Cape Town - A man on trial for Anni Dewani's murder never told his friend he robbed and killed a woman in Ilitha Park, Khayelitsha, the Western Cape High Court heard on Thursday.
Qalisile Dayimani said his client Xolile Mngeni would deny he ever mentioned to his childhood friend, who is testifying, that he shot a woman, robbed her of her cellphone, and stole a brown Nokia in the same area.
The witness, whose identity is being withheld for fear of reprisal, replied that Mngeni had definitely mentioned it while they were taking a walk on Sunday, November 14, 2010.
“Didn't you mention that on occasion, when you conversed, you would mislead (and joke with) each other?” Dayimani asked him.
“That's correct,” the friend answered.
Dewani was killed in Gugulethu on November 13, 2010, in an apparent hijacking while on honeymoon with her husband Shrien. Their hijacked vehicle was abandoned in Ilitha Park.
Mngeni has pleaded not guilty to charges of kidnapping, robbery with aggravating circumstances, murder, and illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition.
Dayimani asked the witness if Mngeni ever told him who the woman was that he had apparently shot. The witness said he didn't mention a name.
“Did he describe her in any detail?”
He replied with a no.
The lawyer ended his cross-examination and the witness was allowed to leave the stand.
The trial would resume on Monday with a new witness.
Deputy director of public prosecutions Adrian Mopp told the court the trial was not likely to finish in the allocated time of two weeks, as about 21 witnesses still needed to be called.
Judge Robert Henney would meet with both teams in his chambers on Monday to discuss the progression of the rest of the trial. - Sapa