Fifth Panayiotou murder suspect in court
A FIFTH suspect arrested in connection with the murder of schoolteacher Jayde Panayiotou appeared in the Port Elizabeth’s Magistrate’s Court yesterday and appeared annoyed with the media for taking photographs of him.
Zolani Sibeko told reporters: “You make me sick.” He also said: “You have no right to take pictures of me.”
Sibeko’s family members were seated in the court gallery and were also angry with the media for trying to take pictures of him.
A woman got up to tell court employees pictures were being taken. The court was not yet in session.
Police arrested Sibeko on Sunday after using cellphone plotting to identify him as having been at the scene when the alleged kidnapping took place.
Jayde’s husband, Christopher, has been accused of planning the abduction and murder of his wife in April last year, allegedly because she was a “financial burden”.
The state alleges he paid a bouncer at his Infinity nightclub, Luthando Siyoni, to hire hit man Sizwezakhe Vumazonke to kidnap and kill Jayde.
Siyoni has since become a section 204 witness, which means that he is indemnified from prosecution if the court is satisfied at the end of the trial that he testified honestly.
The state further alleges Sinethemba Nenembe helped Vumazonke to kidnap and kill Jayde at the behest of her husband.
The matter was postponed until July 27 for the defence to obtain copies of the docket. – ANA