Lelo’s trial: will there be justice?
Lelo’s long-awaited trial brings unexpected twists and turns.
Skeem Saam Weekdays SABC1 18:30
In the build-up to her day in court, Lelo’s (Amanda du-Pont) on campus scouting for character witnesses on Wednesday 16 September when she runs into one of her victims and gives him the surprise of his life. “Kwaito (Clement Maosa) sees Lelo talking to Sis’Ouma (Elizabeth Mlengana),” says Amanda. “Lelo then gives Kwaito the keys for the scooter that he got her as a present back when they were in a relationship. He’s wary around her and doesn’t believe anything she says. He believes that she has ulterior motives and is hostile.” Could Lelo’s gesture be the first of many attempts to sway testimony on the witness stand?
ABOUT TURN
It’s a good thing that Lelo’s current squeeze Mangaliso (Bongani Masondo) isn’t being grilled in the court, because on Thursday 17 September, Lelo comes clean to him about all her past crimes, including those she’s being charged for. “I think she feels that she has nothing to lose and wants to be completely open with him,” says Amanda. “She knows that he has already heard about a lot of the things that she has done, so she decides to tell him everything.”
Meanwhile, on Friday 18 September, it looks like one of the prosecutor’s top witnesses, Lelo’s former BFF and roomie Enhle (Natasha Thahane), has decided against testifying to the vicious relationship the two once had, which ended with both girls in hospital. And the most surprising thing is that Lelo had nothing to do with Enhle backing out. “Enhle explains that she knows how witnesses are sometimes treated and she doesn’t want to be treated like a criminal,” Amanda reveals.
WITNESSING LELO’S PAST CRIMES
When Lelo steps into court on Monday 21 September, her lawyer Kobus (Anton Dekker) has thoroughly prepared her, but she’s still nervous. Lelo pleads not guilty”, says Amanda. But to her surprise, Enhle, who’s evidently had a change of heart, is the first witness to take the stand. “She talks about the incident with the tea that was poisoned after Enhle found out about some of Lelo’s crimes over the internet in July,” she says. “Enhle gives damning evidence until Lelo’s lawyer takes over and tries to discredit her.”
But if Lelo thought that day 1 of the trial was bad, day 2’s even worse on Tuesday 22 September, when her former accomplice Ephraim Legodi (Mashabela Galane) spills the beans on their crimes together even before she came to Turfloop. “This totally freaks Lelo out, because she knows that he has a lot of dirt on her,” Amanda says. “But Kobus is a good lawyer and he’s confident that he’ll get her off because he somehow manages to make most of the prosecutor’s witnesses look bad.”
NAIL IN THE COFFIN
Meanwhile, Friday 25 September sees Mangaliso trying his best to silence the alarm bells going off in his head about his lady love – and because Lelo’s so low on allies, she can’t afford to lose any more support. “Their relationship is shaky at this point,” Amanda says. “After he hears details of how she committed the crimes, he’s doubtful about the relationship but she persuades him to have faith in her.”
Lelo also has Kwaito’s testimony to deal with on Monday 28 September. “It looks like everything’s going against Lelo, as he’s forced to re-live their relationship,” explains Amanda. “But then Kobus starts questioning him and rips him apart, making Kwaito sound like a habitual liar who could easily be lying about Lelo right now.”