The High Court in Pretoria hearing the Senzo Meyiwa murder trial has heard accusations of possible witness intimidation from the accused sitting in the dock. Proceedings got off to a tense start on Friday morning as the state played a video clip showing accused 5, Fisokuhle Ntuli, making gestures that the state has described as a pull of a trigger, which happened during Constable Sizwe Zungu’s testimony on Thursday.
The state of expected to raise issues with accused 5’s gestures during Zungu’s testimony yesterday.#SABCNews #SenzoMeyiwatrial #SenzoMeyiwa pic.twitter.com/HijqEA1Uhb
— Sipho King K Kekana (@KingKAzania) September 8, 2023
Quizzed by the court as to what message he was trying to convey, Ntuli says he cannot recall, insisting that from where he is sitting he cannot even see the witness.
Part 2#SenzoMeyiwa #SenzoMeyiwaTrial pic.twitter.com/HLVRBo1CY5
— Miss Baloyi (@MissBaloyi_) September 8, 2023
Judge Ratha Mokgoatlheng has warned the accused against intimidating witnesses.
Mokgoatlheng has gone further to say the same had happened during Jack Buthelezi’s testimony.
Buthelezi, accused 2 Bongani Ntanzi’s friend, made a U-turn on the witness on Tuesday when he was giving testimony about a conversation he had had with Ntanzi following his arrest.
During his evidence-in-chief, Buthelezi told the court that Ntanzi had told him he was arrested for unlawful possession of ammunition and for killing the former Bafana Bafana captain.
However, under cross-examination Buthelezi changed his tune saying Ntanzi had said it was the police that were saying he killed Meyiwa.
The judge, noting his 50 years of experience, says he noticed similar gestures from the accused.
He has admonished the accused.
The trial continues.
The defence is cross-examining Zungu who has placed all the five accused in Vosloorus on the day Meyiwa was shot and killed.
He has told the court about how the accused had carried a 38 Revolver special and a 9 mm pistol on the day and how accused 1, who he knows from KZN, had broken the news of Meyiwa’s death before the news officially broke before they seemed to celebrate over a bottle of whiskey.
Senzo Meyiwa Murder Trial | 08 September 2023:
