Elandslaagte farm murder: bail hearing postponed again
In the meantime, the accused will remain in custody.
The bail hearing of Reinhardt Steyn, Chriswell Dumisani Masilela, and Dumisani Luthuli, accused of murdering Thembeni Mnguni (29) and Wanda Mahlangu (21), was postponed again.
The matter appeared in the Middelburg Magistrate’s Court on Thursday.
The men are accused of kidnapping, malicious damage to property, and murder.
The incident reportedly happened in Elandslaagte in August when Mnguni and Mahlangu were apparently accused of stealing livestock.
On Thursday, Detective Captain Sipho Khumalo was further cross-examined by the attorney of Masilela and Luthuli, Katlego Dolamo.
Dolamo asked the detective about Masilela’s confession and the inconsistencies of dates.
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Khumalo said the mistake was human error, and the context of the confession was more important.
Dolamo also questioned the detective about why an identity parade was not carried out.
The detective said the identity of the accused was indefinitely known by the witnesses.
Advocate Werner Jungbluth cross-examined the detective about his previous testimony about Steyn reportedly paying the two other accused.
The detective had previously told the court that R50 000 was paid into Masilela’s bank account from Steyn’s account.
He added that R25 000 was paid into Luthuli’s account by Masilela.
Khumalo further stated that the evidence of the payments was not in his docket in court but at the Laersdrift Police Station.
He also mentioned that the case was previously being investigated by a different detective who has since left the detective unit and was currently on leave.
Jungbluth offered to give the court his client’s bank statement to prove that Steyn didn’t pay the accused.
The magistrate ordered the state to provide the bank statements, and the matter was subsequently postponed to October 16 for further hearings.
In the meantime, the accused will remain in custody.
@middelburgobserver The bail hearing of Reinhardt Steyn, Chriswell Dumisani Masilela, and Dumisani Luthuli, accused of murdering Thembeni Mnguni (29) and Wanda Mahlangu (21), was postponed again. The men are accused of kidnapping, malicious damage to property, and murder. The incident reportedly happened in Elandslaagte in August when Mnguni and Mahlangu were apparently accused of stealing livestock.
