Rustenburg - The Limpopo High Court in Polokwane is expected to deliver judgment in the murder trial of Thoriso Themane on Wednesday, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said.
The State alleges Chuene Maleka and Alfred Mothapo together with six teenagers assaulted Themane, 28, in 2019 at Fauna Park in Polokwane after the teenagers accused him of taking a cap belonging to one of them. He later diedhospital.
His murder was recorded on a cellphone video that went viral on social media platforms at the time.
NPA spokesperson in Limpopo, Mashudu Malabi-Dzhangi said Maleka and Mothapo denied that they assaulted Themane although they were at the scene.
"The two adult accused testified that the deceased was assaulted by the young offenders while he was outside Mothapo's homestead. They told the court they could not stop the fight as the children were many. However one of their friends who was in the car with a baby was trying to call the police but the police never arrived at the scene," she said.
She said the State’s case was that the two assaulted Themane and one of them also hit him with a car jack.
Their legal representative had called on the court to release them because they joined a group of teenagers and never assaulted Themane and they later left the scene while trying to call the police to rescue Themane.
Malabi-Dzhangi said two of the teenagers submitted a plea statement which stated that they slapped Themane and kicked him out of their car.
They then left the scene while the other group was assaulting him.
She said the deputy director of prosecution decided to charge the teenagers, submitting that there was evidence that they participated in the incident from the begining, one of them even called the other group to come and see how the "the big five commits murder"
Judgment is expected on Wednesday.
IOL