Senzo Meyiwa trial: Five bombshells from this week’s proceedings

From naming the alleged mastermind behind the murder of former Bafana Bafana captain Senzo Meyiwa to an alleged R3 million bribe, here are some of the bombshells dropped at the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria, where the trial resumed this week.

Lead investigator Brigadier Bongani Gininda is under cross-examination in the trial within a trial that seeks to determine the admissibility of confessions allegedly made by accused 1 Muzi Sibiya and 2 Bongani Ntanzi.

FIVE BOMBSHELLS DROPPED AT THE SENZO MEYIWA TRIAL

Five men are on trial for the murder of the soccer star, Muzikawukhulelwa Sibiya, Bongani Ntanzi, Mthobisi Prince Mncube, Mthokoziseni Maphisa and Fisokuhle Nkani Ntuli.

The men face charges of premeditated murder, attempted murder, robbery with aggravated circumstances, possession of firearms without a licence, and possession of ammunition. All five men pleaded not guilty.

Here are the key highlights:

• The High Court heard that the murder of Meyiwa was a contractual assassination or hit and not a robbery gone wrong as initially thought.
• Gininda told the court that both Sibiya and Ntanzi named singer Kelly Khumalo as the person who hired them to kill the former Orlando Pirates captain.

“It was further discovered through cellphone analysts that her cellphone memory album has the same photo of a see-through bag containing cash notes and in the exact position or location of Mncube.

“There is no reasonable explanation as to why Kelly will be in contact telephonically with a hitman or killers of her boyfriend and share the same picture of a bag full of money,” Gininda said.

ALSO READ: Kelly Khumalo allegedly ordered the hit on Senzo Meyiwa

• The court also heard that after the murder, the Emaweni hitmaker failed to disclose four cellphone numbers to the police, which cellphone analysts then discovered during investigations. Investigations revealed that Khumalo was linked to accused 3 and 4 through a cellphone connection.
• Furthermore, the lead investigator told the court that communication records between Kelly and Zandile show that from as early as 2013, she wanted to eliminate Meyiwa.

““She clearly hated him and wanted to get rid of him. She further states that she regrets not succeeding in getting rid of him before. Taking into account all these facts, an inference can be drawn that she meant killing him,” Gininda told the court.

• Accused 2 Bongani Ntanzi admitted his two confessions and went further in proposing a plea bargaining in that he will plead guilty and testify against his co-accused. He further alleged that he was offered a R3 million bribe by Gininda to implicate “the right people” for the murder of Meyiwa.

The trial will resume on Tuesday, 30 January.

ALSO READ: Senzo Meyiwa trial: Ntanzi wanted to testify against his co-accused

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