LISTEN | Inexperienced officers compromised Meyiwa murder scene, court told

The defence attorney in the Senzo Meyiwa murder trial in the Pretoria high court did not hold back as she told the second witness that the case had been poorly investigated because it was attended by inexperienced officers.

Advocate Zandile Mshololo told Sgt Patrick Mlungisi Mthethwa at his cross-examination on Friday that had he not left the crime scene unprotected, it would not have been cleaned.

“It's because you were inexperienced. All of you were juniors. There was no-one to supervise you on the work you were doing and this case has been poorly investigated because it has been attended by inexperienced officers, incompetent,” she said.

Mthethwa did not respond. 

It also emerged during cross-examination that Mthethwa failed to mention that there were four police officers and two student constables who had travelled in one vehicle to the Vosloorus house where Meyiwa had been shot.

“I have a reason why I didn't mention them. It is because they were students and were not even allowed to drive the work car,” he told the court.

Mshololo asked Mthethwa if he did not realise that the house was a crime scene, having heard that a shooting had taken place there.

“There was something in my mind that said it was a crime scene, but there was no-one who could point out or give me information on where the shooting happened,” he said.

He said what came to mind was to go to the hospital where they had been told that the people who had information were.

Mthethwa told the court they didn’t inspect the house for evidence on their first visit, but only did so when they returned from the hospital.

Mshololo further questioned why Mthethwa and his colleagues did not split into groups — to have someone guard the house while others went to the hospital.

“In our minds, nothing had registered at that time yet that it's a crime scene, hence we decided to leave,” he said.

He said it never crossed his mind that the people involved might return to remove evidence.

Mshololo also questioned why the house key was left with the man who identified himself as Themba, the uncle, and his status not properly confirmed.

“You were supposed to take the house keys from him and lock the house, and you did not do that. You left the crime scene with the person whose status was not clarified at the time,” she said.

She questioned whether Mthethwa knew what had happened in the house during the one-hour period they were at the hospital.

Mshololo asked whether he was aware of a witness who deposed an affidavit stating that a woman by the name of Maggie Phiri had [allegedly] cleaned the house after the police left for the hospital.

“Before you arrived to cordon off the crime [scene], it was cleaned. If you had not left the crime scene unprotected, those people wouldn't have cleaned the crime scene. Had you not left the crime scene unattended, those witnesses would not have had access to the crime scene and cleaned it before you cordoned it off,” she said.

Five men stand accused of killing Meyiwa, who was the goalkeeper for Orlando Pirates and Bafana Bafana. They are Muzikawukhulelwa Sibiya‚ Bongani Sandiso Ntanzi‚ Mthobisi Prince Ncube‚ Mthokoziseni Ziphozonke Maphisa and Fisokuhle Nkani Ntuli.

Meyiwa was shot dead at the home of his girlfriend, singer Kelly Khumalo, in Vosloorus in October 2014. She and several other people, including her mother, sister, her sister’s boyfriend and a friend of Meyiwa’s, said he had been shot in a robbery gone wrong.

The group said a dreadlocked man had entered the house and shot Meyiwa during a scuffle, while a second attacker was outside.

The five accused have pleaded not guilty to murdering Meyiwa.

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