Pretoria - Seven years after billionaire businessman Wandile Bozwana had died in a hail of bullets and five years after the criminal trial of his four alleged killers started, the end is in sight for the long trial after all the accused on Tuesday told the court that they will not testify in their defence.
Gauteng High Court, Pretoria Judge Papi Mosopa said nearly a year ago all the accused had a case to answer to, when they launched an application for their dismissal. This came after the prosecution closed its case in May following about four years of evidence presented against the accused.
The four, including Vusi “Khekhe” Mathibela, at the time argued that there was no evidence linking them to the October 2015 assassination of Bozwana and the attempted murder of his business partner, Mpho Baloyi.
The judge, however, did not agree at that stage.
No new evidence was led during the nearly a year delay between then and now in the case and the only evidence thus far, is that presented by the state.
While accused Sipho Hudla and Matamela Robert Mutapa this week could not make up their minds whether they would testify in their defence, it came as a surprise to everyone on Tuesday when they closed their cases. They thus abided with the evidence presented by the state.
Even more of a shock was when Mathibela and co-accused Bonginkosi Paul Khumalo, through their lawyers, told the court that they too, will not testify in their defence. These two, however, did not close their cases at this stage, as each of them elected to call a witness to testify for them.
Judge Mosopa frowned upon this and said usually an accused testified, followed by his or her witnesses. It is usually only during sentencing procedures that witnesses are called, even if the accused elected not to testify.
Counsel for the accused, however, told the judge it was their legal right to do things this way.
Khumalo’s witness will testify on his behalf on Wednesday, after which Mathibela will call his witness on Thursday.
Following legal arguments, which are expected not to differ much from the arguments presented last year when they asked for their discharge, judgment is expected.
Hudla and Khumalo’s decisions not to testify or to present further evidence in their defence came as a surprise to Advocate Gerhard Botha, who represents Mathibela. He said he had no idea this would happen and as Mathibela is accused number three, he was thus supposed to present his case next.
But Botha said as this turn in events caught them by surprise and shock, their witness will only be ready on Thursday.
Pretoria News