Kleynhans suspects in court

Police officer Owen Matini had just confiscated a cellphone from one of the men suspected of the murder of a Hermanus businessman when the cellphone rang. Matini noted the name “Mzala” on the screen before answering it and pretending to be its owner.

“When I answered, the person on the phone said to me: ‘Hey, Leixo. Owen was here. He was looking for our shoeprints. Didn’t he come over to you as well?’

“I said: ‘No, he did not come to this side.’

“Mzala then said: ‘Don’t worry. The guns are safe with us.’ ”

Matini was in the witness stand in the Western Cape High Court on Thursday before Acting Judge Joey Moses.

The court was weighing up the facts in the murder trial of Johannes Kleynhans who along with his wife, Jean, were assaulted with firearms and knives in their Hermanus home in 2009. Several items were stolen, including jewellery, firearms and a Mercedes-Benz.

Three men are accused of the crime, Mawanda Mabenu, Thembalethu Khameni and Vuyusami Mfundeni.

Another accused - and the alleged owner of the cellphone that Matini confiscated that night - Xolani Ndumo, has already pleaded guilty to the murder and to the robbery with aggravated circumstances. Ndumo, who offered an apology to the Kleynhans family, was earlier sentenced to 20 years’ imprisonment.

Mabenu, Khameni and Mfundeni, however, have maintained their innocence.

Matini went on to tell the court that the cellphone conversation then suddenly came to an end.

He was uncertain as to why the call was terminated.

“I then said to myself that I needed to find ‘Mzala’ because he had mentioned guns,” said Matini, who added that he did in fact manage to locate “Mzala” at a later stage.

He also told the court that when he had first been called to the crime scene, the investigating officer had told him that the crime appeared to have been committed in a similar manner to that of a previous incident that had left Hermanus reeling.

American citizen Perry Page was murdered in 2007 during a robbery he and his wife were subjected to in their Hermanus home.

While defence counsel initially argued that the court disregard the cellphone evidence put forward by Matini as it violated Ndumo’s privacy, Judge Moses overruled this as Ndumo had already been convicted.

Judge Moses said he would provisionally allow the evidence before making a final order at a later stage.

The trial will continue on Tuesday. - Cape Times

aeysha.kassiem@inl.co.za