The lawyer representing two men accused of killing Hillary Gardee wants the court to subpoena the police with regard to a confession statement allegedly made by the fourth suspect in the case which he believes will exonerate his clients.
Adv Ncobizitha Mlilo is representing Philemon Lukhele and Albert Gama in the murder case in the Nelspruit magistrate's court. Police said they had arrested Hlabirwa Rasie Nkune last week but the man is yet to appear in court.
Mlilo wants provincial police commissioner Lt-Gen Semakaleng Manamela and police spokesperson Brig Selvy Mohlala to appear.
“It's the words of the police who said that the suspect confessed. We have no knowledge of the statement but the statement exonerates our clients. We should be talking about withdrawal of cases, not bail application.
“If the state have a statement of a suspect confessing to the commission of this crime, we would want the state to give us that statement because it effectively exonerates our clients.
“We are therefore making an application that the state comes forward and deny that they have arrested suspect number four [Nkune] in this case and suspect number five,” Mlilo said.
The fifth man who was arrested in the matter was released. He had been taken in for questioning with Mohlala saying he was found in possession of Gardee's property, a laptop and cellphone.
Mohlala said the man was initially taken in for questioning on Sunday and later arrested. He was due to appear in court on Wednesday but did not and Mohlala said he had been released.
“We are also aware that there's suspect number five who was arrested like Sunday and someone in the NPA decided not to enrol that matter to the court,” said Mlilo.
“If I can put it in the words of Shakespeare, 'There's something rotten here'. That is why we would lead evidence that the state have arrested accused four and five,” said Mlilo.
State prosecutor Adv Ntsika Mpolweni said the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) doesn't have any statement.
“I'm tempted to not comment on this because the NPA doesn't have any statement,” said Mpolweni.
Magistrate Patrick Morris postponed the bail application to September 2.
Mpumalanga police spokesperson Brig Selvy Mohlala said the police cannot comment on the matter until they are subpoenaed.
Lukhele, Gama, and their co-accused Sipho Mkhatshwa are accused of abducting and killing Gardee, daughter of former EFF secretary-general Godrich Gardee.
Gardee went missing on April 29 while shopping with her adopted three-year-old daughter. The child was later that day dropped off at Umnenke Street at KaMaGugu, where they resided.
Gardee’s lifeless body with stab wounds, boot prints and a gunshot wound was found by timber plantation workers on May 3, about 60km outside Mbombela, towards Sabie.
Mkhathswa has been denied bail.
Nkune has been linked to the killings of three other women, including one from Midrand, Johannesburg, whom he met on Facebook. The killing happened last week.
He appeared in court for that matter on Monday, where his case was postponed to August 22.
Nkune has also been accused of killing his girlfriend Pretty Mazibuko and her cop sister, Marcia, in Kanyamazane, Mbombela, on May 15 — just 12 days after Gardee’s body was found.
He appeared in the Kanyamazane magistrate's court in connection with the killings of the Mazibuko sisters on Tuesday.
He was remanded in custody until September.
newsdesk@sowetan.co.za
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.