Metro officer testifies in Simba case
KENSINGTON B – JMPD officer cannot deny that the cause of the tragic accident may have been mechanical failure.
Cross-examination of Metro police officer, Vusi Khambule continued at Randburg Magistrates’ Court.
The trial of Preshalin Naidoo, who has been charged with two counts of culpable homicide, had a delayed start because the State struggled to find a courtroom that could accommodate them.
Presenter of Top Billing, Simba Mhere, and Kady-Shay O’Bryan, a mother and friend, lost their lives in a tragic motor accident on 31 January last year on William Nicol Drive.
Defence Advocate Francois Roets raised concerns about information and evidence being withheld by the State. “It is a trial by ambush; the information is not forthcoming to the defence.”
State prosecutor MJ de Jager retorted that the State was not aware of the insurance policy and the GPS tracking that belonged to the accused until recently.
After substantial discussion regarding the issues raised by Roets, Metro police officer Vusi Khambule, was called to the stand.
Roets questioned Khambule about photographs that were taken at the accident scene. He asked whether any pictures taken of the right front wheel indicated mechanical failure. Khambule responded that he could not see any obvious signs of engine or mechanical failure.
Khambule testified to the marks left on the road and suggested that they correlated with ones that are made when a vehicle is making a turn at a high speed. The defence questioned Khambule’s ability to access the scene before and after the bodies were removed. Roets used photographs from the accident scene to show Mhere’s head may have been moved.
At the end of the cross-examination, Roets asked Khambule if the tragic accident could have been the result of mechanical failure. To which he answered, ‘Yes’.
The trial continues on 13 September for the State to give the defence extra evidence or testimonies that will be used.
