A new witness in the trial of the five men accused of murdering South African football player Senzo Meyiwa took the stand on Monday.
Mandlenkosi Goodman Zondo provided testimony in the Pretoria high court regarding alleged police brutality, intimidation and procedural irregularities following his detention in June 2020.
Zondo detailed his initial encounter with investigators, stating he was lured into disclosing his location by a police officer identifying himself as Brig Vusumuzi Mogane.
After he was apprehended, Zondo claims he was never provided with a formal reason for his detention.
Instead, he described a scene of immediate physical restraint. The witness alleged he was forced into a vehicle where handcuffs were tightened to the point of causing permanent injury.
During a visual inspection by the court, an interpreter described scars on Zondo’s left wrist resembling “short traditional marks” or the letter “Z”. Zondo testified that these marks, and a kick to the stomach sustained during interrogation, were the direct result of the police assault.
According to Zondo, investigators focused their pressure on his alleged connections to two of the accused.
Regarding Mthokoziseni Ziphozonke Maphisa, identified as accused number four, police allegedly claimed that Zondo had visited him in prison to deliver toiletries.
Zondo denied this allegation, stating that he was not even aware which correctional facility was holding Maphisa at the time.
The interrogation also centred on Bongani Sandiso Ntanzi, who is the second accused in the matter.
Zondo testified that while he was being kept in a holding cell, police questioned him about whether Ntanzi had ever shared incriminating details regarding the crime.
Zondo told the court that the investigators asked him directly if Ntanzi had confessed to him that the group was responsible for the murder of the former Orlando Pirates and Bafana Bafana goalkeeper.
The testimony further explored the events at the Yeoville police station, where Zondo claims he was misled into signing legal documents.
“I believed I was signing an inventory for personal property, as is standard procedure during an arrest,” Zondo stated.
He clarified that a uniformed police officer provided the document, which contained a case number without explaining its actual nature or contents.
Zondo described a “midnight transfer” where he was removed from his cell and taken to an undisclosed location, which he believed to be in the Boksburg area.
He noted the presence of a building with an attached shade but was unable to identify the specific police officers involved due to the late hour and his own confusion.
Zondo testified that Brig Bongani Gininda and a team of four other police officers failed to explain his constitutional rights before commencing an interrogation.
Meyiwa was murdered in an apparent robbery in Vosloorus, Ekurhuleni on October 26, 2014.
The trial continues.
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