‘MY son is not guilty of any crime.’
These were words of a former police colonel when he delivered new evidence during the appeal hearing of his already convicted ‘son’ at eSikhaleni Regional Court on Thursday.
Mzwakhe Dube, a former eShowe SAPS colonel, defended Mdu Dube, who was charged and sentenced for robbery in 2014.
The young man was arrested in April 2013 for being part of a robbery gang that raided the Mgazi Tuck Shop in the Bombane area in Gingindlovu.
However, according to the former colonel his ‘son’, who was later labelled as his cousin, was never part of the gang.
He accused the police of not doing their jobs properly.
‘Police did not conduct a proper investigation. I did not trust the police, so I conducted my own investigation which showed my son was not at the scene of the crime,’ he said.
‘The gun used during the robbery was found in another man’s house, as well as all the items taken from the tuck shop.’
The colonel also clarified to the court the young man is indeed his cousin, but known as his son because he had raised him.
Emotions ran high as the ‘father’ attempted to clear the applicant’s name, causing some disorder during his testimony.
With the state prosecutor annoyed over the colonel’s series of outburst, Magistrate S Ngesi had to intervene and instructed the man to answer questions properly.
‘This is a court of law; you can’t just say anything you want. You must behave yourself,’ said the magistrate.
The colonel’s delivery followed testimony from one of the convicted gang members.
In a surprising twist, convicted Mandoza Mbatha testified that the applicant was not a member of the gang.
However, Mbatha’s evidence was questioned.
The case will resume on Monday, 26 September when the state will decided on the way forward.
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