By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The explosive details about links among the five accused in the Senzo Meyiwa murder trial, and suggestions of cover-ups have emerged at the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria on Thursday.
The former Bafana Bafana and Orlando Pirates goalkeeper Meyiwa was gunned down at his lover’s Vosloorus home on October 26, 2014.
Five men are on trial for the murder of the soccer star, Muzikawukhulelwa Sibiya, Bongani Ntanzi, Mthobisi Prince Mncube, Mthokoziseni Maphisa and Ntuli.They face charges of premeditated murder, attempted murder, robbery with aggravated circumstances, possession of firearms without a licence and possession of ammunition.
State advocate George Baloyi led evidence with the SAPS phone expert, Colonel Lambertus Steyn, who is an analyst at the SAPS Cold Case Unit.
Steyn told the court on Thursday that cellphone records showed Khumalo and Ntuli were in contact on October 15, 2014, at 5.33pm in a 98 second phone call.
They were also in contact on Kelly Khumalo’s 082 704 **** number on August 2, 2014, at 10.40pm, for 110 seconds.
She had received both calls in Kimberley and rural Limpopo, cellphone records showed. Ntuli had used his 073 305 **** number to make the calls.
Steyn was roped into the case to analyse the cell phone data of the people present when Meyiwa was shot and killed in October 2014.
He revealed that accused number five, Ntuli, had direct communication with Khumalo and that Ntuli’s number was saved as “mfo kaKhumalo” on accused number three, Mncube’s phone.
According to Steyn, Ntuli and Mncube seem have been “the main guys” in all of this with Mncube saving the number belonging to Ntuli, who was the only accused understood to have spoken to Kelly.
Ntuli, who hails from Usuthu village in Nongoma in KwaZulu-Natal, is currently serving six life sentences and 39 years for political killings of Bhutiza Sandisa Mahlobo in 2015; ANC ward councillor Goodwill Bheki Nyembe the following year, attempted murder of Nolwazi Ngomezulu, 2017 murder of Sibusiso Phiwayinkosi Zulu, Mcebisi Zulu and Sibusiso Elvis Zulu.
“The number used by accused three Mncube to Ntuli (accused number five), is the same number that he confirmed to police on the day that he was arrested.”
It has also emerged in court that Mncube had dreadlocks on the day Meyiwa was murdered.
Steyn says Mncube was arrested in 2015 for possession of unlawful firearm, and as procedure, his cellphone was also confiscated and handed to an investigation officer, Srgt Sipho Mabasa, for investigation.
“Then he has to take the firearm to the forensics and the cellphone to the war room and that’s where they download cellphone data and analyse it. And they should also apply for 205,” said Steyn.
Steyn added that the investigation officer didn’t know about the Meyiwa case and Mncube’s possible involvement in it when he arrested him.
He said after the cellphone data was downloaded from Mncube’s phone, he received a request from from Brigadier Bongani Gininda to go through the photos downloaded from that phone and among other things, he wanted to if Mncube ever had dreadlocks.
Steyn said the day before and the day Meyiwa was murdered, Mncube took a picture of him wearing beige clothing and spotting dreadlocks.
Tracking the movement of Meyiwa’s phone after he was murdered, Steyn said Meyiwa’s phone received a call at 22h11 when it was connected to a tower located in Botshelong Hospital’s premises.
It understood that around that, Meyiwa had already been rushed to the hospital where he was declared dead on arrival.
He said it was picked up through a cellphone tower on the hospital premises.
Steyn said this indicated the cellphone was at the hospital with him.
Last week, Zandile Khumalo testified that when they returned from the hospital, Meyiwa’s phone was found in the kitchen at her mother’s house.
He established Meyiwa’s SIM card had been swapped a day after the incident and the new SIM card was used in retired soccer player David Mathebula’s handset.
Steyn said eight calls were made between Mathebula and Khumalo but he could not decipher who was on the receiving end of those calls. He told the court that not only was a sim swap done in October 2014, but that eight calls were made from the SIM-swapped number to Meyiwa’s girlfriend Kelly Khumalo’s cellphone.
He said these were eight calls between Kelly Khumalo and Mathebula on October 27 2014, the day after the shooting.
When asked by Judge Ratha Mokgoatlheng if he could confirm that it was between the two of them, Steyn confirmed by saying that he could identify it was between them.
Cellphone data analysis had already revealed that Longwe Twala who understood to have pushed the intruder holding a gun as he ran out of the Khumalo house after two intruders had come in, sent an sms at 22h26, saying “Senzo is dead they just shot him in front of us (sic).”
Watch Live in the video below:
Video Courtesy of SABC.