Four of five accused men in the Senzo Mayiwa murder trial speak to their various legal representatives while sitting in the dock at Pretoria High Court on 17 July 2023. Picture: Gallo Images/Phill Magakoe
More shocking revelations were heard during the murder trial of former Bafana Bafana captain Senzo Meyiwa in the Pretoria High Court on Tuesday.
The state’s new witness, Sergeant Moses Mabasa, took the stand to testify in the trial following the conclusion of his colleague Colonel Lambertus Steyn’s cross-examination.
Mabasa, who is also an analyst within the South African Police Service (Saps), revealed the intricate contents of information extracted from the cellphone of accused number three, Mthobisi Mncube.
The police officer told the court on Tuesday he was tasked to analysed the data on Mncube’s phone, including calls and other downloads to piece together the puzzle around Meyiwa’s shooting, which took place in 2014.
He said he looked at the data after receiving the device, SIM card, and memory card from Brigadier Bongani Gininda in August 2020.
On the phone, Mabasa explained he found a series of concerning photographs.
One of those images, the officer said, was a silver and gold firearm saved in 2014 as ‘my killing machine’.
Another picture contained a rifle and a 9mm pistol on a car seat.
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According to the sergeant, there were a lot of pictures – one of which was saved as “intsimbi ehlanyisa olova” (a gun that makes guys go crazy) – on the device.
“Most of them are 9mm pistols with ammunition,” Mabasa said.
“The pictures I have compiled are the ones requested by the investigating officer,” he added.
The officer also told the court other pictures had large sums of money including R100 and R200 notes saved under the name “Impande yesono” (the root of all sin).
Another image depicted bank notes stashed inside a transparent plastic bag.
Mabasa further presented a spreadsheet of the SMSs, incoming and outgoing calls, and other data on Mncube’s phone.
He said the data was used through a program to created an “association chart”.
Steyn had testified last week his investigations found the accused knew each other on the basis that they had communicated before.
The trial will resume on Wednesday morning.
Meyiwa was shot dead at the house of his then-girlfriend and singer Kelly Khumalo’s mother in Vosloorus, east of central Johannesburg, on 26 October 2014.
Mncube, Fisokuhle Ntuli, Bongani Ntanzi, Mthokoziseni Maphisa and Muzikawukhulelwa Sibiya are on trial for the footballer’s murder.
The suspects face charges of murder, attempted murder, robbery with aggravating circumstances, possession of an unlicenced firearm, and possession of ammunition.
They have pleaded not guilty.
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