‘Registers can’t just grow feet and run away’: ‘Missing evidence’ dominates Senzo Meyiwa trial

“Missing evidence” was thrown into the spotlight in the Senzo Meyiwa murder trial as the defence cross-examined the state’s witness.

Warrant officer Thabo Mosia returned to the stand at the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria for the fourth day running on Monday.

Mosia previously testified about how he collected and processed all the evidence from the Vosloorus family home of Meyiwa’s then girlfriend, singer Kelly Khumalo, where the former Bafana Bafana captain was shot on 26 October 2014.

Pocketbook

Mosia told the court last week that his arrival at the crime scene was delayed as the incident was only reported four hours later.

He testified that from his home, he went to Vosloorus police station and then the Botshelong Hospital before he was taken to the crime scene because he did not have the Khumalo house address.

According to the witness, he arrived at the crime scene 20 minutes after midnight on 27 October although he had to leave to attend to other cases.

Mosia estimated his arrival back at the crime scene to be around 6am.

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Continuing with the cross-examination on Monday, Advocate Zithulele Nxumalo, representing Mthokoziseni Maphisa, quizzed Mosia about the pocketbook he used to document the details of the arson and spaza shop robbery cases he later attended to.

Mosia revealed that the book could not be found when it was searched for last year at the criminal records centre in Springs.

Nxumalo had requested that the former constable bring the book to court.

“Without the pocketbook, there isn’t any other particular register,” Mosia said.

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

Advocate Zandile Mshololo, representing Fisokuhle Ntuli, also raised questions about Mosia’s whereabouts when he left the crime scene where Meyiwa was shot.

Mosia disputed the suggestion that he did not go to other crime scenes after leaving the Khumalo house.

“I disagree with that even though I don’t have proof of that,” the officer said.

‘Information is irrelevant’

The defence argued that there were items missing from the evidence that Mosia collected, which included photographs of the crime scene.

The state, however, argued that all the available evidence was submitted to the court.

“The witness cannot just say he doesn’t have them. He must go and search for them and come back,” Nxumalo said.

While Mosia agreed to the request, state prosecutor, advocate George Baloyi objected.

“This witness, as he has correctly pointed out, now he must go and look for that information which has absolutely nothing to do with this case… it’s regarding the other scenes that he admitted. We are saying therefore, that information is irrelevant. They are not disputing that he attended the scene so I don’t see how the trip register assists them in that regard,” Baloyi responded.

RELATED: Senzo Meyiwa trial: Cop admits it did not occur to him to collect some evidence from the house

Advocate Charles Mnisi, representing Mthobisi Mncube, also insisted that the information should be found because “registers cannot just grow feet and run away”.

“Up until he finds those registers, this point is going to be hanging which is going to be prejudicial to the accused persons here because they could argue that by virtue of the the fact that we were not afforded the opportunity to cross-examine this witness on the basis of the registers which we requested… this trial was unfair,” Mnisi said.

“These registers are kept at a storage for a particular period of time and more importantly, they knew that at one stage or another this case will have to come before court.”

Watch the proceedings below:

Mosia later complained that he has been in court for too long.

“I don’t understand what more is needed from me whereas I was merely doing my work. My body cannot take it anymore,” he said.

Judge Ratha Mokgoatleng asked Mosia to go look for the evidence.

Exhibits

Earlier, Mosia was also questioned about the exhibits he collected at the scene which included a bullet fragment, bullet projectile, walking stick and a hat.

The witness said he was unaware that ballistic tests on the bullet projectile was only carried out six years later after Meyiwa’s murder in 2020.

“I do not have any knowledge of that,” Mosia said.

He pointed out that the bullet projectile was only discovered when he returned to the house later in the morning.

READ MORE: Senzo Meyiwa trial: Cop found 2 bullet holes but refuses to say if crime scene was compromised

Mosia argued that the exhibits were packed and stored properly in a safe at the Springs office on the same day he collected them.

The witness said he kept the key to the safe with him.

He also disagreed with Mshololo that there was no one who signed off that he placed the exhibits in a safe.

“I have explained that we worked tirelessly on that day, and when we got to the office, the exhibit clerk was not there, and the safest thing to do was to put the exhibits in a lockable safe for safekeeping” Mosia said.

He said the exhibits were officially recorded on 30 October.