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‘Mr Twala came to our family home for a visit over the weekend’ – Senzo Meyiwa’s sister
Twala and his son, Longwe, have been mentioned several times in the murder trial against the five men accused of killing the soccer player.
Ernest “Chicco” Twala. Photo: Gallo Images/Sowetan/Bafana Mahlangu
Slain Bafana Bafana and Orlando Pirates goalkeeper Senzo Meyiwa’s sister has confirmed that music mogul and businessman, Chicco Twala, visited the Meyiwa family over the weekend in Umlazi, KwaZulu-Natal, days before the resumption of the soccer star’s murder trial.
Senzo Meyiwa murder trial
Nomalanga Meyiwa confirmed this on Tuesday morning, in an interview with eNCA while attending the trial proceedings at the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria.
While Meyiwa’s sister said she wasn’t home in KZN when Twala visited the family, she confirmed the music mogul met with Meyiwa’s mother, but she declined to divulge the details of the meeting.
“Yes, Mr Twala came to our family home for a visit at the weekend to see our mother.
“Unfortunately, I don’t want to get into the details of the meeting because I was not there, but I can confirm he did come over for a visit,” she said.
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Twala also confirmed to SABC News journalist, Chriselda Lewis, he met with the family and spoke to Meyiwa’s mother.
When asked why he met with the family, Twala said he went to KZN to offer the family his support.
Twala and his son, Longwe, have been mentioned several times in the murder trial against the five men accused of killing Meyiwa during an alleged botched robbery in 2014.
Meyiwa was gunned down on 26 October, at the family home of his then-lover and musician Kelly Khumalo, in Vosloorus, Ekurhuleni.
At the time of his death, Longwe was dating Khumalo’s sister, Zandi, and was among the seven witnesses who were inside the Khumalo house when the soccer star was fatally shot.
Case 375
Longwe is also implicated in the infamous second docket, known as case 375, related to police investigations into Meyiwa’s murder.
The docket recommended that Kelly, Longwe, Zandi and the other witnesses who were present at the crime scene be charged with Meyiwa’s killing.
READ: Kelly Khumalo accidentally shot and killed Senzo Meyiwa, court told
The docket was exposed by former advocate Malesela Teffo in June, when he was the legal representative for four of the five accused, charged with Meyiwa’s murder.
It was opened in 2019, after police hit a snag in their investigations into the soccer player’s killing.
Teffo alleged at the time that Meyiwa was accidentally shot by Kelly Khumalo and claimed there was an elaborate cover-up of what really happened in 2014 by the witnesses.
The current defence lawyer for four of the five accused, Tshepo Thobane, has also alleged in court that Longwe was the one who shot Meyiwa after finding out that Zandi was having an affair with the soccer player.
The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said in August, that case 375 had no merit as it was an internal opinion from a junior State advocate.
The NPA said a final decision regarding the docket would only be made once the trial against the five accused is concluded.
Tumelo Madlala’s testimony
Meyiwa’s long-time friend, Tumelo Madlala, testified in September that Twala apparently asked Kelly if she wanted to go on an overseas holiday, just days after Meyiwa was murdered.
In his testimony, Madlala said Twala visited Kelly at the Mulbarton townhouse that the couple shared in the south of Johannesburg.
“I’m just not sure about the day, but while I was still in Mulbarton, Chicco Twala arrived. Kelly was crying during those days and I was also not well… I heard him speaking to Kelly, asking her whether she wanted to go on an overseas holiday,” he said at the time.
Madlala has been on the witness stand since Monday, for cross-examination by Thobane.
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