‘9mm cartridge can’t fit in revolver’: Ballistics expert debunks Meyiwa gun theory

The firearm that killed former Bafana Bafana captain Senzo Meyiwa might not have been a revolver, the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria heard on Friday.

Meyiwa’s longtime friend, Tumelo Madlala, previously testified that the gun used by the intruder had a wheel, which implied that the firearm was a revolver.

Warrant Officer Cornelius Roelofse, who works for the ballistics unit of the South African Police Service (Saps), testified as the state’s latest witness in the trial.

Roelofse examined the firearm confiscated from accused number three, Mthobisi Mncube, when he was arrested in connection to the murder of an Alexandra taxi boss in 2015.

No serial number

Roelofse on Friday gave his evidence-in-chief detailing how he carried out tests on Mncube’s gun when he received the firearm alongside a magazine and blue box with ammunition from an exhibit bag.

The expert told the court the 9mm parabellum pistol’s serial number had been obliterated.

“When we receive a firearm for investigation there’s no serial number which might have been removed so we usually mark it under the trigger with a lab number,” he said.

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Roelofse indicated that he used an electromagnetic etching process to determine the serial number.

He testified that he conducted tests to check if the firearm was in good firing condition.

“We also place it in the docket to ensure that we can compare it to others,” Roelofse said.

The expert revealed that he positively linked Mncube’s firearm to the Meyiwa and the Alexandra cases.

Watch: What you need to know about the Senzo Meyiwa murder trial so far

Earlier this week, Lieutenant-Colonel Christian Mangena testified that the ballistic test bullets matched the bullet that was found at the crime scene where Meyiwa was shot, although he did not have Mncube’s firearm.

Mangena confirmed that the bullet came from same pistol Roelofse had examined in the taxi-murder matter.

‘Not a revolver’

During cross-examination, Sipho Ramosepele, who is the lawyer for Muzikawukhulelwa Sibiya and Bongani Sandiso Ntanzi, asked Roelofse whether there were instances where a gun can leave the same class characteristics and individual characteristics on a bullet.

“It may be the same class characteristics, but there will be a difference in the individual markings,” Roelofse responded.

Roelofse also seemed to dispel the notion that a revolver firearm may have been used when Meyiwa was shot.

“No, my lord, because a 9mm cartridge is thicker and wouldn’t fit in the 38 Special Revolver,” he told the court.

READ MORE: Senzo Meyiwa lived for ‘seconds or minutes after being shot’

Meanwhile, Roelofse said the bullet found on the kitchen counter at the crime scene could have landed there as it may have lost its impact once Meyiwa was shot.

“I was not on the scene but I think the energy of the bullet would have been lost as it went through the victim’s body. There is a chance the bullet might still be in good condition because it would have lost energy. My lord, going through the body could cause the bullet to start stumbling.”

On why cartridge cases were not found at the crime scene, Roelofse “speculated” that the cartridge could have been stuck in the gun.

The court has heard that two gunshots went off inside the Vosloorus family home of the former Orlando Pirates goalkeeper’s then-girlfriend, singer Kelly Khumalo, on 26 October 2014.

Two bullet holes – on the floor and door – were discovered at the crime scene.

Watch the proceedings below:

Five men including – Mncube, Bongani Ntanzi, Mthokoziseni Maphisa, Fisokuhle Ntuli and  Muzikawukhulelwa Sibiya – are on trial for Meyiwa’s murder.

The suspects have pleaded not guilty.

They face charges of murder, attempted murder, robbery with aggravating circumstances, possession of an unlicensed firearm, and possession of ammunition.