Court packed for Westbury shooting case

Lindray Khakhu appears in the Newlands Magistrate's Court in Sophiatown on Tuesday, 12 August 2014 in connection with a shooting in Westbury that critically wounded Luke Tibbetts, a three-year-old boy who later died.Picture: Werner Beukes/SAPA

Lindray Khakhu appears in the Newlands Magistrate's Court in Sophiatown on Tuesday, 12 August 2014 in connection with a shooting in Westbury that critically wounded Luke Tibbetts, a three-year-old boy who later died.Picture: Werner Beukes/SAPA

Published Aug 12, 2014

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Johannesburg - The courtroom in the Newlands Magistrate's Court in Johannesburg was packed on Tuesday ahead of the appearance of a man allegedly involved in a shooting that left a 3-year-old boy dead.

Several heavily armed policemen lined the one side of the courtroom, while a large number of journalists and photographers lined the other.

People in the public gallery were awaiting the appearance of Lindray Khakhu, 24, who allegedly hit Luke Tibbetts during a shooting in Westbury on August 2.

Earlier, people sitting inside the courtroom were ordered out by police to be searched before re-entering.

They were escorted outside to be frisked, while their bags and possessions were also searched.

Police also limited the number of people entering.

No visible community gathering or protest action was apparent outside the court or inside the courtroom.

Khakhu appeared in the same court last Tuesday.

The court heard that the case was not the only charge Khakhu faced.

He faced three other charges of attempted murder for a separate incident.

The cases were pending before the high court, prosecutor Vincent Mochabela said.

The 24-year-old was arrested after people who witnessed the shooting identified him and reported the matter to the police.

Keenan Mokwena, 28, who was also shot and wounded in the Westbury shooting, was arrested on Wednesday.

He was also expected to appear in the Newlands Magistrate's Court on Tuesday but it was not immediately clear if they would appear in the same hearing.

Mokwena and Tibbets were travelling in the area in different vehicles during the shooting. They were taken to nearby hospitals after the shooting.

Mokwena was shot in his right arm. He was treated and discharged.

Tibbetts was critically wounded and died in hospital on August 8. He had been on life support machines since the event.

Mokwena appeared in the same court on Thursday.

Magistrate Ivy Serei postponed the case to allow the State to gather further evidence and to allow community tensions to settle. Both men remained in custody. - Sapa

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