By Kamini Padayachee
All four men accused of robbing a Waterfall father and his daughter, and gang-raping the daughter near a dam in Hillcrest last year, were pointed out by the two at an identity parade soon after the incident.
This was according to Brighton Beach police Inspector Charles Starbuck, testifying in the men's robbery and rape trial in the Durban High Court on Friday.
Jessica Foord, 22, and her father, Tim, were accosted by five men at a dam near the Polo Pony Club in Hillcrest on March 2 last year. Jessica was gang-raped by four men while her father was tied to a tree. The men later fled in Tim Foord's bakkie, taking two cellphones, wallets and jewellery.
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Mbotho Msomi, 26, Lindani Maphumulo, 19, and Ntuthuko Chili, 19, have all pleaded not guilty to charges of robbery with aggravating circumstances, sexual assault and rape.
Msomi says he was not there, Maphumulo says he left the area when the others planned the robbery and Chili says he was forced to do what he did by Msomi.
The fourth accused, Siyabonga Ntinga, has admitted robbing the Foords but denies the rape and sexual assault charge. The state is proceeding with all charges against him, alleging he acted in "common purpose" with the others for the sexual offences.
A fifth accused, a 17-year-old, pleaded guilty to robbery and rape charges in connection with the incident last year and is serving 17 years in jail. He testified for the state last week.
In court on Friday, Judge Vivienne Niles-Duner and an assessor watched footage of the identity parade before hearing Starbuck's testimony.
Starbuck said he had conducted an identity parade on April 2 last year. He said the Foords had pointed out all four accused.
Maphumulo's lawyer, Veronica Singh, said the participants in the parade had all not looked similar and asked Starbuck if he had been involved in choosing them. Starbuck said the investigating officer, Detective Inspector B Dlamini, had chosen the participants.
He said he would not have continued with the parade if he felt there had been gross misrepresentation.
One member of the police team that arrested the four men also testified on Friday. Inspector Nicolaas Strauss, of the provincial house robbery task team, said the officers had been helped by an informer in locating the four accused.
Strauss said the informer had led them to Shongweni two days after the incident where they had arrested the four men at their homes.
He said Maphumulo had run when police had tried to arrest him and a police dog had been used to restrain him.
"When I searched him, I found a Sony Ericsson cellphone in his right pocket. The phone was later identified as Jessica Foord's phone."
The trial continues on Monday.
- This article was originally published on page 4 of The Mercury on March 09, 2009
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