State advocate Marius Stander hit back at the defence on Thursday‚ using cellphone records and a diary entry to show that a Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions (DDPP) in Grahamstown was in fact consulted about a sting operation which led to Christopher Panayiotou’s arrest for murder.
Advocate Selwyn Gounden had taken Stander by surprise on Wednesday when he denied any involvement in the set up of an undercover sting in which Panayiotou seemingly discussed the hit on his wife‚ Jayde‚ in April 2015.
In the Port Elizabeth High Court on Thursday‚ Stander questioned Gounden on his relationship with fellow DDPP‚ Advocate Malherbe Marais‚ senior state advocate Zelda Swanepoel and Organised Crime Unit detectives Warrant Officer Leon Eksteen and Captain Kanna Swanepoel.
After Gounden indicated that he had a good relationship with each of them‚ Stander said he found it strange then why their versions differed significantly from his.
According to Stander‚ the DDPP in Port Elizabeth‚ Advocate Indra Goberdan‚ had contacted Gounden on April 28 2015‚ a day prior to the sting‚ to seek his advice.
Gounden had then phoned Zelda Swanepoel as a sounding board‚ and after further discussions with Marais‚ had phoned Goberdan back to inform her that a Section 252 authorisation was not needed.
Zelda had noted this conversation in her diary‚ while telephone records apparently show the sequence of calls.
The trial continues on Friday.
