Rustenburg - There is a strong possibility that men accused of murder in Marikana were misidentified, the Rustenburg Magistrate's Court heard on Friday.
"Warrant Officer [Victor] Ramorwesi, an identity parade was not conducted, there is a strong probability that the accused were misidentified. Accused five [activist Napoleon Webster] was granted R3 000 bail at the high court because he was not at the scene at the time of the incident, again accused seven [ Aphindile Pungone] was granted R2 000 bail by this court because he was in Sandton and only left after 4.15pm. Traffic is crazy around that time in Sandton," Eric Max for the accused argued in court.
Ramorwesi told the court that conducting an identity parade could have been a formality because the witness knew the accused.
"We are dealing with an eyewitness who knew the accused, he worked with them and attended all meetings with them. Conducting an identity parade could have been a mere formality," Ramorwesi replied.
"Accused 11 [Nkosindiphile Nziyose], he is the guy from Shoprite. He was at work at Shoprite in Marikana. He clocked out at 5.01pm. Accused 10 [Nkululeko Msithwa] was not in Marikana he attended a funeral in the Eastern Cape on December 9 [2016]. He left Marikana in the early hours of December 8. There were over 60 people maybe 100. The witness could have misidentified them," Max said.
He said their alibi was collaborated by documents, Nziyose produced a signed shift sheet indicating he was at work from 7am until 5.01pm and Msithwa produced a death certificate for his brother's daughter and a leave form from Lonmin.
Max argued that the accused be granted bail stating that the case against them was weak.
Golden Rikhotso for the State, appeal to the court that it should come to a decision which was in the interest of justice.
He pointed out that there was a dispute with the time the murder was committed. Two eyewitnesses gave conflicting time, one said the murder occurred at 4.45pm while the other one stated the murder occurred at 5.15pm, while Ramorwesi told the court that according to records from Marikana police station, the police received a complaint about a person being stabbed at 6pm, the person who called the police was at the scene.
The State alleges that Aubrey Seitsang, Sibonile Sobopha, Mdlondozi Fundiwo, Herbert Baqhesi, Napoleon Webster, Aphindile Pungone, Samson Gqwetani, Gift Luveli, Nkululeko Msithwa, Nkosindiphile Nziyose, Luvo Soyizwaphi, Sivuyile Qasha and Mzolisi Mbulana hacked Sabata Petros Chale to death on December 8, 2016.
Ramorwesi told the court, Chale had more that 100 stabbed wounds in his body.
Webster was released on a R3 000 bail after he appealed the decision of the Rustenburg Magistrate's Court to refuse him bail, at the North West High Court.
Pungone was granted R2 000 bail following a dispute of whether he was in Marikana on December 8. He claimed he was in Sandton, Johannesburg at the wage signing ceremony.
Seitsang, Sibonile Sobopha, Mdlondozi Fundiwo, Herbert Baqhesi and William Nyenyane had been deneid bail. They were expected to appear in court on September 12, together with Webster.
The case against Aphindile Pungone, Samson Gqwetani, Gift Luveli, Nkululeko Msithwa, Nkosindiphile Nziyose, Luvo Soyizwaphi, Sivuyile Qasha and Mzolisi Mbulana was postponed to August 17 for ruling on the bail application.