Johannesburg - Alexandra residents knew that one of the men accused of killing Mozambican hawker Emmanuel Sithole always carried a knife with him.
This emerged in the trial of Sithole’s four accused killers in the Johannesburg Magistrate’s Court on Monday.
Investigating officer Constable Sydney Mhlongo explained how he tracked down and arrested the men.
Mthinto Bhengu, Sizwe Mngomezulu, Sifundo Mzimela and a 17-year-old, who can’t be named, are facing charges of murder and assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm for allegedly killing Sithole in Alexandra in April.
A photo of the attack showing Bhengu wielding a knife at Sithole was published on the front page of the Sunday Times. All four have pleaded not guilty.
Mhlongo explained how witnesses led him to a shack that belonged to Bhengu’s cousin, Sinethemba Mkhize.
There, he found and arrested the minor and Mngomezulu. Bhengu, who shared the shack, wasn’t there.
“At the shack, we found clothes with bloodstains, and Sinethemba confirmed they belonged to Bhengu.
“Two knives were found under (Bhengu’s) bed and a big spanner similar to the one used (in the attack).” One of the knives found in the shack was a bloody Okapi knife, like the one used by Bhengu in the Sunday Times picture.
When Mhlongo went to the Madala Hostel to look for Bhengu, his mother denied knowing him. But when he was leaving, Bhengu was pointed out to Mhlongo and he was arrested. “In his possession we found an Okapi knife,” Mhlongo told the court.
Bhengu’s lawyer, Tshege Ntake, said his client denied being in possession of a knife at the time of his arrest.
“That’s his version and it’s incorrect,” Mhlongo replied.
He said he had been warned by locals that Bhengu always carried a knife with him.
Mzimela wasn’t at home when Mhlongo looked for him, but his family allegedly later notified police when he got home, and he was arrested.
Witnesses have testified how Sithole was hit over the head with a monkey wrench, stabbed in his chest with a knife, beaten and jumped on before he died.
Mhlongo confirmed that according to the post-mortem report, the cause of Sithole’s death was a stab wound to the chest, presumably administered by Bhengu.