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MBABANE – When an Old Mutual employee approached a motor mechanic to fix a faulty clutch, little did he know that the mechanic will drive away with the motor vehicle.

The incident happened at Mahwalala in Mbabane, resulting in the arrest of Lwazi Pascal Mamba of the area.

Testifying against Mamba, Mduduzi Gamedze told the court that he was driving to his flat in his friend’s car when it developed a mechanical fault near Sibhalamavi at Mahwalala.

He stated that he then called the car owner, Themba Ngcamphalala, about the fault.

“I asked Ngcamphalala if he knew any mechanic around Mahwalala and if he could give me his contact number. He responded to the affirmative and gave me two cellphone numbers. He stated that one of the numbers belonged to Southern Mamba while the other belonged to his son Pascal. I then called Pascal to assist,” he told the court.

Gamedze told the court that Pascal arrived promptly and promised to fix the fault, calling it minor. He told the court that Pascal asked him to assist with light so that he could see the fault.

“I was sitting in the front seat when assisting Pascal. Pascal reversed the car and kick started it using his tricks. He then sped off. I tried to pull the hand brake when I noticed that he was taking a route to Mhlambanyatsi. I tried to reason with him but he did not stop. I had no option other than jumping out of the speeding car. I was injured as I fell out onto the road,” he submitted. Gamedze told the court that he then called Ngcamphalala, informing him about the incident. He told the court that Ngcamphalala fetched and transported him to his house. It was Gamedze’s evidence that Pascal drove away with his house keys, clothing and a cellphone.

“He drove away with alcoholic beverages as we were preparing a get together at work the following day,” he submitted.

Alcohol

However, during cross-examination, Pascal put it to Gamedze that there was no way he could have stolen the car from a person he knew from the area. He claimed that his sole intention was to fetch spanners at Siphocosini when he took the Mhlambanyatsi route. He mentioned that he informed Gamedze about the spanners. He was quick to state that Gamedze might have missed this information given that he might have imbibed alcohol.

In response, Gamedze told the court that Pascal never communicated anything to him. He stated that he had not imbibed alcohol as he was from work.

Corroborating Gamedze, Ngcamphalala told the court that upon learning about the incident, they drove towards Mhlambanyatsi. However, he stated that they made a U-turn at Mantabeni because they were low on petrol.

“From Mantabeni, we drove to the old Mbabane Police Station where we recorded statements. We then posted a picture of the car on Facebook, appealing to anyone who saw it to call the police. On the following day, good Samaritans called informing us that a car similar to the one on the post was seen next to the Eswatini Electricity Company depot in Malkerns. We were told that an unknown man was seen moving towards the car with a battery,” he submitted.

Ngcamphalala testified that they then alerted the police, who swiftly rushed to the scene. Upon arrival in Malkerns, he submitted that they found Pascal already arrested by the police of the area.

The matter continues in court.