U-turn as defence for Nomia Rosemary Ndlovu declines to call her brother to the witness box

Alleged killer cop Nomia Rosemary Ndlovu has dropped one of the two witnesses she had planned to testify in her defence this week.

Ndlovu, who is accused of a string of crimes relating to her allegedly killing six people, and plotting to kill seven others, allegedly to cash in on insurance policy claims, had previously informed the court that her mother, Maria Mushwana, and her brother Director Ndlovu would testify in her defence.

Mushwana testified on Thursday but after her testimony, Ndlovu's lawyer informed the court that following consultation with Director, they had decided to withdraw him as a defence witness.

They gave no reasons as to why they had made the U-turn as Director had been sitting outside the courtroom for several days, waiting to be called.

He would have been key in confirming Ndlovu's allegations concerning the condition in which they found Zanele Motha - their niece- when she was treated in hospital several years ago.

Ndlovu has been charged with Motha's murder. Motha had left her Daveyton home where she lived with her partner and three children to reportedly visit Ndlovu.

The circumstances around Motha's death are sketchy.

In the indictment, the state said she had been found severely injured on the side of a road in Kempton Park, rushed to Arwyp Hospital by Ndlovu and was declared dead on arrival.

This was two days after she had been treated at the Tembisa Hospital where she had sustained some facial abrasions.

Dr Ipeleng Nku, who treated Motha at the Tembisa Hospital, said she had not had any life-threatening or serious injuries when she treated her. She said X-rays also revealed no internal injuries. It was Nku's testimony that Motha claimed to have been struck by a bicycle.

After prescribing some pain medication, she discharged Motha.

But as Ndlovu took to the stand this week, she claimed that Motha had been discharged in a terrible state from Tembisa Hospital and subsequently died.

It is Ndlovu's version that she had been called by Director and informed to rush to Tembisa Hospital as Motha was injured.

She said she went to the hospital and found Motha sitting in a wheelchair. She enquired what had happened but Motha was not speaking at the time.

Ndlovu said she was informed that Motha has been discharged but as she tried to get up from the wheelchair, she complained about pain. She informed a nurse of Motha's condition but was told that the pain medication she has been administered with would soon kick in.

She said she wheeled Motha out of the hospital and then took her to her house, cooked for her, Motha bathed and afterwards, Ndlovu said she gave Motha her own pain medication as the hospital had allegedly discharged her with none.

But, Ndlovu said, in the early hours of the next morning, she awoke to hear Motha groaning in pain. She went to check on her but found her bent over.

Ndlovu said she decided to take Motha to the Arwyp Hospital in Kempton Park and chose not to go back to Tembisa as she did not that trust they would assist her promptly and she believed they had also failed to administer proper treatment earlier.

Motha was declared dead by doctors six minutes after they attended to her.

A post mortem revealed, however, that Motha had suffered severe injuries before her death.

The mother of three had three broken ribs and a damaged liver. These are injuries that Nku insisted Motha did not have when she left the Tembisa Hospital.

It is Ndlovu's version that Motha had come to live with her, as she claimed she and her partner Jabu Nhlapo were “not in a good state”. She said on the day Motha was found injured, she had left the house with plans to go to a college and see a friend. She did not know how Motha had been injured.

Ndlovu had covered Motha under her insurance policies and got about R120,000 in payouts. She assisted her family in burial costs.

Motha's partner, Nhlapo, spoke to TimesLIVE on the sidelines of the proceedings.

He denied that he and Motha had had trouble in their relationship and maintained Motha had gone to see Ndlovu with the hope that she would assist her in getting back her late father's home which was occupied by another relative of Ndlovu's.

He said they still did not understand what happened to her.

On Friday, after three days of on-and-off time on the stand, Ndlovu is expected to be cross-examined by prosecutor Riana Williams.

TimesLIVE