Africa-Press – South-Africa. One of the men accused of the murder of Cape Town lawyer Pete Mihalik intends to apply for a discharge.
The trial resumed on Monday after a long recess and, after handing up two more affidavits, the State concluded its case.
Nkosinathi Khumalo, Sizwe Biyela and Vuyile Maliti are on trial for the murder of Mihalik and the attempted murder of Mihalik’s children on 30 October 2018 in Green Point. They pleaded not guilty.
Khumalo and Biyela’s lawyers said on Monday that their clients would testify, but Maliti’s lawyer wants to apply for a discharge in terms of Section 174 of the Criminal Procedure Act. Such an application is usually lodged by the defence if they feel the State does not have enough evidence keep the accused in the dock.
Maliti’s application will be heard first when the trial resumes on Thursday. This means the court will have to wait to hear Khumalo and Biyela’s testimony on their activities on that fateful day.
If Maliti’s application is successful, there will be no need for him to sit through any testimony.
The affidavits the State handed in before closing their case contained maps overlaid with cellphone tower locations to show the frantic phone calls on the morning of the assassination.
Things went quiet once Biyela was in custody. He was arrested for a traffic violation. Khumalo was tracked to a bus stop in Bellville and arrested, and Maliti presented himself to the police when he heard they were looking for him.
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