Johannesburg - An ID parade is set for this weekend to determine whether the second man arrested for the killing of forensic auditor Lawrence Moepi was the driver during the incident.
Moepi, who worked on several high-profile commercial crime investigations, was gunned down in October last year in the parking lot of his Joburg auditing firm, SizweNtsalubaGobodo. He had allegedly been followed by two men in a VW Golf.
There was speculation after Moepi was killed that the sensitive cases he was handling meant the shooting could have been a hit.
The first suspect in the case, Remember Siporo, was arrested just a few weeks after Moepi’s killing. His trial is set to begin on November 17 at the South Gauteng High Court in Joburg.
Last week, police announced they had arrested the alleged accomplice, Mpho David “Thirteen” Nkosi, in a rondavel in KwaZulu-Natal more than nine months after the shooting.
Nkosi was set to apply for bail on Tuesday, but the case was postponed because the ID parade had yet to be conducted.
Nkosi’s lawyer, Rahn Stylianou, told the court that the defence would be bringing in some of its own people to act as “suspects” in the line-up.
The Star understands there are at least two eyewitnesses to the crime who will be asked to identify Nkosi.
National police spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Solomon Makgale said Nkosi had been hiding out in a rondavel in West Bank, KZN, when he was arrested.
Makgale said numerous bits of information from the public had allowed investigators to track down the man he described as a “career criminal”. He said Nkosi had been linked to other crimes, including robberies and carjackings and, despite his shoddy accommodation, had been “living the high life off the proceeds of crime”.
Makgale said it was unlikely there would be further arrests in Moepi’s case, meaning the lengthy 11-month hunt for Nkosi signalled the end of the police’s case.
Nkosi’s bail application is set down for September 23.
At the time of his death, Moepi was the head of the forensic service unit at SizweNtsalubaGobodo. The firm’s website said Moepi had worked with the police’s Commercial Crime Unit, and the Scorpions before it was shut down.
It was also reported that he had been appointed to work on the investigation into the arms deal.
He was also allegedly handling investigations for the Office of the Public Protector.
Public Protector Thuli Madonsela confirmed that he had been working as an external auditor for her office, finalising at least one case.
The Star