Durban - A man who pleaded not guilty to the murder of a KwaZulu-Natal farmer, has since contradicted himself on the witness stand, admitting to the killing.
Andries Maviyezulu, 28, is charged with the murder and robbery of Gert Uys, 55, who was shot dead in his farmhouse at Swart-Mfolozi on May 31, 2012, while he prepared to pay his employees.
Maviyezulu’s co-accused, Christian Smith, 44, from Secunda, was granted bail in 2012 and has been on the run from the law ever since.
A police source indicated on Wednesday that he may have skipped the country.
According to police, Smith owed Uys money, and to evade paying him, decided to have him killed.
Smith allegedly enlisted the help of Maviyezulu, who secured the services of one Hercules Mbatha. Smith is alleged to have obtained firearms for his two cohorts, and on May 31, 2012, drove the two to Uys’s home. They both entered the house and shot Uys in the chest.
He died instantly.
The two then ransacked the farmhouse and fled with R18 000, a Taurus .38 revolver, 25 rounds of ammunition, two Blackberry cellphones, a Rolex wristwatch and a laptop.
They got away in Uys’s Toyota Landcruiser, which was later found abandoned.
Some time later, Smith is alleged to have paid Maviyezulu and Mbatha for killing Uys.
In August 2012, police, acting on a tip-off, arrested Smith and Maviyezulu in Mpumalanga.
Two firearms were recovered during the arrest.
Mbatha was also arrested and subsequently pleaded guilty to the murder and was sentenced to an effective 38 years in prison.
Daily News
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