Africa-Press – South-Africa. The five men accused of murdering Cape Town lawyer David Mbazwana and his friend pleaded not guilty when their trial started in the Western Cape High Court on Wednesday.
Sinethemba Makeleni, Anga Anganda Mabenjane, Lonwabo Cosa, Siyanda Ndzendze and Brian Balangile stood up when the charges were read to them and each answered “not guilty”.
They are charged with murder, attempted murder, robbery with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, unlawful possession of a 9mm semi-automatic pistol, and unlawful possession of ammunition for the firearm.
Four of the five accused wore masks and many of the witnesses have been assigned letters of the alphabet to protect their identity.
Mbazwana was shot dead on 19 May 2019 and another person was shot and injured. The survivor’s name must also be withheld due to safety concerns.
The murder and attempted murder occurred at Mbazwana’s tavern in a shack called The White House, in Eiland informal settlement in Makhaza, Khayelitsha.
According to the indictment, the gun used to kill Mbazwana and wound the second person was stolen from somebody in Thembalethu, George, on 13 May.
The first witness, “Mr A”, also wearing a mask and declining an offer to remove, testified on what he saw the afternoon he visited the tavern on an errand.
He went there to fetch something from one of the people who worked there.
He had been babysitting for his sister, and then left on an errand.
His testimony began with his journey from home to the tavern down a long narrow passage about one metre wide between shacks. This is where he said he first encountered Makeleni walking with a woman and another man, before he exited the passage into a sand road to the tavern.
Later, he saw Cosa inside the tavern. The accused were asked to stand up, and he pointed out the toothpick-like figure of Makeleni and Cosa in a crisp navy blue Nike tracksuit.
Exhibits of a map of his journey through the shacks to the tavern was circulated and handed up as the State began the job of establishing the layout of the crime scene.
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