Durban — Hammarsdale police Sergeant Mthokozisi Nene, who is accused of killing his wife, Thobeka Nene, will know on Friday if his bail application in the Camperdown Magistrate’s Court was successful.
The court finalised his bail hearing on Monday.
Several people who claimed to have witnessed Mthokozisi allegedly shooting Thobeka with a shotgun were expected to testify. This was revealed by the State during the cross examination of the investigating officer, Captain Bathabile Mdladla. She submitted to the court an affidavit from a witness.
During the first hearing, Mdladla told the court that witnesses were scared to come forward because they feared that the police officer would intimidate them should he be released on bail.
On top of the two witnesses the State had secured, the investigating officer said the deceased’s mother and the deceased’s child would also testify and statements would be taken from them. In opposing bail, Mdladla said the deceased mother and her children were scared of Mthokozisi should he be released.
In trying to punch holes in the State evidence, defence lawyer Sizwe Cele argued that the mother and the child were not yet witnesses so the court should not consider them as witnesses since they had not made any statement. Cele also tried to add some information to the accused’s earlier affidavit on his bail application in relation to his marriage to the deceased but the State prosecutor Siphindile Ntombela objected saying that would amount to the amendment of an earlier submission.
Magistrate Nombulelo Nkosi agreed with the State and dismissed the application, saying the accused had the information but chose not to include it in the affidavit. The matter was postponed to Friday.
Nene, from Inchanga, west of Durban, is facing a murder charge. Last week, the court heard details of how Thobeka, a teacher at Inchanga Primary School, was killed.
Mdladla said the post-mortem result revealed that the deceased had her head blown up with a shotgun, adding that the shotgun pellet was found stuck in her head.
The investigating officer further revealed that before she died that night she had sent a voice note to her mother-in-law pleading with her to call the police, saying the accused had started “his thing”.
She clarified that in the voice note the deceased told her mother-in-law that the accused was banging on the door of the room she was sleeping in. But the mother-in-law neither called the police nor “bothered” to come and check.
Furthermore, the investigating officer told the court that police found several live rounds of shotgun and R-5 rifle ammunition inside and in the yard of the Nene house where the incident happened.
She added that when Mthokozisi was questioned about his wife’s death he said two unknown gunmen shot her while she was in the garage, adding that when he came out with his private pistol the two fled the scene.
Mdladla said during a police search of the house, a 9mm Norinco pistol was found hidden in the washing basket in the bathroom.
She said although the suspect had a gun licence, it had expired. The police also found blood-stained blue pyjamas which were hidden on top of the wardrobe in the room.
The investigating officer said the DNA results were not yet available.
Daily News