May 08, 2008, 17:00
A firearms trainer from SAPS College in Pretoria is adamant that he heard gunshots on the recordings made by the emergency services on the night that Noby Ngombane, the Free State Premier's political adviser, was killed in March, 2005.
Captain Sybrand Pretorius was among four witnesses who testified today in the Bloemfontein High Court in the murder inquest of Noby Ngombane.
The first witness to take the stand was a linguist lecturer from the University of South Africa, Kholiswa Moropa. Moropa told the court that she helped to translate Xhosa to English on the emergency recording that was made on the night of the murder.
She was followed by Pretorius, who testified that according to his experience as a firearms trainer he was able to identify two gunshot sounds on the tape. Pretorius's evidence contradicted that of English sound expert, Paul Kroninger, who testified that he could not hear gunshots on the recordings.
Meanwhile Inspector Tshiu Mokete, from the Bloemfontein Serious and Violent Crimes Unit testified, that he had gone to the Eastern Cape to confirm the address of Ngombane's brother-in-law, Bongani Mlambo. He denied that Mlambo, who has been the prime suspect in the murder, was assaulted by the police and forced to make a confession.
The murder inquest continues tomorrow, when the head of the investigations team is expected to testify.
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