SANDF reservist Lwanda Mxolisi Zungu will know on Thursday whether the Pinetown Magistrate’s Court would be releasing him on bail or not. He is charged with the murder of his wife Tania Msane-Zungu. | Supplied.
Durban — The Pinetown Magistrate’s Court would make a ruling on bail in the matter against a SANDF member charged with his wife’s murder on Thursday.
Lwanda Mxolisi Zungu is accused of shooting and killing his wife Tania Msane-Zungu in their Pinetown home while his two children and their grandmother Gwen Msane were in the house.
After that, he ran away and later handed himself to the police.
On Monday after hearing closing arguments on bail from the State and the defence, Magistrate Wendalynn Robinson said she would need time to apply her mind before making a decision.
“Taking into account what was submitted today, I am not in a position to immediately hand down a ruling as there is certain case law that I need to have regard to and apply my mind to before giving a ruling,” she said.
In his address on the bail application, Zungu’s counsel advocate Muzi Mzelemu said it was important to bring it to the court’s attention that the focus at the bail stage was whether the interest of justice permits the release of the accused.
“The court is not being called to find the accused guilty or to make any factual findings as stated in the investigating officer’s affidavit… Even if this court would be convinced that the State has an overwhelming case that is not the test.
“The important question is would his release jeopardise the case? When the investigating officer was asked how far the investigation was he said the bulk of the investigation was done.
“With Zungu being behind bars for the past three months as far as investigations are concerned there's nothing to say he will interfere with investigations,” said Mzelemu.
Speaking on the issue of witness interference as raised by the investigating officer, Mzelemu said the test in this regard was the likelihood of this actually happening.
“If the concern is the prosecution of the case in terms of State witness interference, there’s no shred of evidence that prior or post his arrest Zungu has made contact with the main witnesses those being the mother-in-law and the two minor children.
“There’s no evidence before the court to say he has threatened or contacted them to convince them not to testify. Is his continued detention necessary to protect the investigation, if not then his detention is not in the interests of justice,” the lawyer said.
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