The gun and ammunition used in the murder of former Bafana Bafana captain Senzo Meyiwa, took centre stage in the trial last week after two ballistic experts testified on the unique characteristics of the gun and ammunition recovered from one of the accused.
Gun and ammunition found on accused number three, Mthobisi Mncube
Mthobisi Mncube was the main focus of the trial last week as he was linked to the gun and ammunition used during the murder.
According to witnesses, Mncube is the intruder who allegedly carried a gun on the day Meyiwa was killed.
Police testified that the gun which was found in his position, was the same gun that killed Meyiwa.
Lieutenant Colonel Chris Mangena testified that the ammunition found on Mncube when he was arrested, was the same kind recovered from the crime scene.
The gun was also found to have been used in the murder of a taxi boss, Reggie Mohlala, in January 2015, three months after the soccer star died.
Mncube is already serving more than 30 years for Mohlala’s murder.
Pathologist tells court Meyiwa couldn’t have survived for hours
Pathologist, Dr Johannes Steenekamp, who conducted an autopsy on Meyiwa, told the court that the bullet that killed the soccer star was fatal and he couldn’t have survived for hours.
According to Steenekamp, Meyiwa was shot at very close range, meaning the gun was pressed against his body when the shot went off.
After the bullet penetrated his body, he suffered significant blood loss, which was as a result of internal bleeding.
The shot entered his chest and exited from the back.
Although his wound was fatal, he said his death was not instantaneous.
His view was that he could have survived “seconds, minutes, but definitely not hours”.
Two shots were fired at in the house, not three
Testimony from previous witnesses who were at the scene when Meyiwa was killed, failed to reveal exactly how many shots were fired.
The number of shots was between two or three which created confusion.
However, when Mangena took the stand, he said when he inspected the scene, he discovered that only two shots were fired.
He said one shot hit the tile and the other shot killed Meyiwa.
Bullet went out of Meyiwa’s body and landed on the kitchen counter
The court heard the bullet that struck Meyiwa was the same bullet that damaged the door as it left his body.
Mangena testified that the bullet ricocheted from the door back into the house.
Mangena’s testimony explained why the bullet was found on the kitchen counter.
Previously, Lieutenant Colonel Thobeka Mhlahlo told the court that she was the one who discovered the bullet a day after the murder.
Mangena also added that Meyiwa must have been standing upright in the kitchen with his back towards the kitchen door when he was shot.
Further more, he said Meyiwa was likely shot by someone taller, due to the downward trajectory of the bullet.
However, he couldn’t tell who was the shooter by measuring the height of the suspects
Girlfriend tells court gun was found when Mthobisi Mncube was arrested
Kagiso Tefo briefly dated Mncube in 2015.
Tefo said on the day of the arrest in February 2015, she was coming back from work in the afternoon and had asked Mncube to wait for her at the bus stop to help her carry some plastic bags.
After meeting at the bus stop, they walked back to their place, a police car came speeding and stopped in front of them.
She said the three police officers, two men and a woman, got out of the car and pointed their firearms at Mncube.
Police then searched Mncube before going to their place.
“Police went inside the room with him and searched until they found a gun on top of the wardrobe. They called me inside and asked both of us if we know the gun, I said I don’t know anything about it and he kept quiet,” she said.
“One of the police officers said they will arrest both of us and he told them to leave me because I don’t know anything.”
Meyiwa was killed while visiting his singer girlfriend, Kelly Khumalo, at her home in Vosloorus on October 26, 2014.
The five accused in the Meyiwa murder trial are Muzikawukhulelwa Sibiya, Bongani Sandiso Ntanzi, Mthobisi Mncube, Mthokoziseni Ziphozonke Maphisa, and Fisokuhle Ntuli.
The trial continues on Monday with a new witness.
IOL