Overview
- Accused one, Muzi Sibiya, took the stand as the first defence witness and denied any role in the 2014 killing.
- He testified that police assaulted him, suffocated him with plastic and forced him to sign papers while bleeding, insisting the statement was never read back to him.
- Sibiya challenged lead investigator Brigadier Bongani Gininda’s version of events, saying their interaction happened at Vosloorus municipal offices rather than outside the police station, a site later examined during an inspection in loco.
- Prosecutors assert Sibiya confessed after his May 2020 arrest and pointed out the Vosloorus crime scene weeks later, claims he rejects as the product of coercion.
- Defence lawyers flagged ongoing difficulties securing far‑flung witnesses as the judge cautioned that subpoenas may follow, with accused four, Mthokoziseni Maphisa, expected to testify next.