Port Elizabeth - Christopher Panayiotou’s defence team came out guns blazing on Thursday and accused the State of using intimidation tactics following the arrest of Luthando Siyoni’s girlfriend who was declared a hostile witness earlier in the day.
Babalwa Breakfast, 23, was arrested on charges of perjury and defeating the ends of justice shortly after her testimony at the Port Elizabeth High Court where the ongoing murder trial involving Panayiotou and his two co-accused Sinethemba Nenembe and Zolani Sibeko was underway.
Crying hysterically, she hid her face from reporters and photographers as she was led away by police officers to the court’s holding cells. Breakfast will make her first appearance in the Port Elizabeth Magistrate’s Court on Friday.
Defence Advocate Terry Price accused the State of using intimidation tactics, saying that he was “perturbed” by her arrest and would argue intimidation at a later stage.
“I think it’s appalling that a witness who has chosen not to tell the State everything has now been locked up. It is a flagrant intimidation of witnesses. We have had four or five witnesses who have deviated and they have not been arrested,” Prince said.
“It’s disturbing that Breakfast was arrested, she was in tears, the statements have not been proven.”
Advocate Peter Daubermann who is representing Nenembe and Sibeko said he “strongly condemned” Breakfast’s arrest.
He said other witnesses could fear intimidation and this would infringe his clients rights to a fair trial.
On Wednesday, Breakfast told the court how she stashed money in her old school socks and counted the cash after being told to do so by her boyfriend who she had been in a “loving” relationship with for five years.
She said that Siyoni had informed her the money was for “renovating a gym” he ran in Zwide.
But her testimony contradicted her affidavits, an excerpt from Breakfast’s first statement made to police on April 27, 2015 reads: “According to Thando, Chris wanted him to kill his wife (Christopher’s wife) and that he told him that he cannot do that but he can organise people that can do that for him.”
“In April, but I am not sure of the date, Thando has again informed me that he has found a guy that he called Sizwe who told him that he would kill the said lady for him.According to Thando the person that would successfully do the job for Chris would be paid an amount of R50 000.”
Breakfast denied ever saying this to police her answers were either “I don’t know this”, “I don’t re-call” or “no, I never said this”.
She also denied that Christopher had ever came to Siyoni’s home and said she had only come to know about the businessman after seeing him on TV and in newspapers. Breakfast said that she had never mentioned R50 000 to police, but only that she had counted R30 000 upon her boyfriend’s instruction.
Under cross examination on Thursday, Breakfast was questioned by Price and at one point she broke down in tears.
She was able to recall much more detail when asked questions by the defence as opposed to Wednesday.
She remembered Colonel Willie Mayi taking down her statement at Kabega Park police station and said that he had never asked her to read it and that she was just told to sign it.
Breakfast also recalled her movements in detail prior to being taken to the police station.
She said when she saw Siyoni at Infinity nightclub she had noted no injuries as he passed her to get into a separate police vehicle.
Breakfast then said she saw Siyoni later the same day during the early hours at Kabega Park police station, “If I’m not mistaken his left or right eye was swollen, he had a scratch on the lip and his jeans were ripped”, said Breakfast.
Siyoni was employed by Panayiotou as a bouncer at his Infinity nightclub. The State alleges Panayiotou paid Siyoni to hire hitman Sizwe Vumazonke to kidnap and murder Jayde in April last year.
African News Agency