Khupe denies any part in massacre at Vlakfontein
Co-accused said to have wanted Khoza house
The lawyer representing one of the two men accused of killing seven family members in Vlakfontein says his client was not involved in the massacre.
He said this in the Protea magistrate’s court where the case had be shifted, to avoid further delays.
Ernest Mabaso, 27, and Fita Khupe, 61, appeared in court yesterday where the pair is facing seven counts of murder and two counts of robbery. Mabaso faces three additional counts of rape.
Khupe’s lawyer Gerhard Langman cross-examined the investigating officer Sergeant Banele Nldovu regarding the contents of a confession made by Mabaso in which he alleged that he was forced to kill the seven members of the Khoza family.
Langman argued that the dates contained in Mabaso’s confession statement and affidavit, which implicated Khupe, were not consistent and therefore could not be relied upon.
“In his [confession] statement, applicant 1 [Mabaso] claims that he killed Mbali and Siyabonga Khoza on October 29. This is not consistent with the charge sheet which states that he murdered them on October 23.
“My client saw the bodies for the first time on October 29 as he was there to repair two doors in the house. This means that we cannot trust the information provided by applicant 1 because it means he is lying,” Langman argued.
Ndlovu responded by saying Mabaso was not lying, but could have made a mistake.
“I will be able to prove at a later stage as we investigate this matter that this was a mistake and that he is not lying. The information provided by applicant 1 has been consistent with our investigations up until this point,” Ndlovu said.
Ndlovu further told the court that Mabaso was not coerced into making the statement. However, Ndlovu said he was not present at the time Mabaso’s statement was made and he could not attest whether the 27-year-old read and confirmed the details of his statement.
“As I was not there, I cannot confirm most of the questions that you are asking me.”
In his confession statement, Mabaso claimed that Khupe forced him to murder the family members so that they could inherit the Khoza house.
Furthermore, Mabaso alleged that Khupe wanted to avenge the death of one of his relatives at the hands of an incarcerated Bonginkosi Khoza – a family member of the deceased.
Mabaso alleged that Khupe and a gang of men from Cape Town kidnapped him in 2015 and instructed him to move to Johannesburg with the sole purpose of murdering the Khoza family.
He further alleged that Khupe bought him a brand new hammer which he would use to kill the Khoza family members with.
The matter was postponed until December 4 for cross-examination.
The dates in Mabaso’s confession not consistent with charges