‘Not my pings’ says Kilian during Kinnear murder trial
THE man accused of pinging the cellphones of alleged underworld kingpins and high-ranking police officers in the Western Cape has disputed all of the State’s evidence against him.
Zane Kilian submitted a plea explanation to the Western Cape High Court this week during the trial of the alleged killers of slain Anti-Gang Unit (AGU) detective, Charl Kinnear.
The former rugby player is on trial alongside alleged underworld kingpin Nafiz Modack, and faces a slew of charges relating to the illegal interception of communications, the murder of Kinnear, attempted murder of lawyer William Booth, and charges under the Prevention of Organised Crime Act.
According to the State, Kilian pinged the cellphones of various alleged members of the underworld, including Jerome “Donkie” Booysen, Mark Lifman and alleged 28s gang boss, Ralph Stanfield.
The State also argues in the indictment that Kilian pinged the phones of Kinnear and other top cops including Jeremy Veary and former AGU boss, Andre Lincoln.
In his plea explanation, Kilian denied playing any role in the murders or attempted murders, saying all the elements of the charges relating to the pinging were in dispute.
He said he ran a business in Gauteng known as the Zane Kilian Tracking and Investigations CC, which covered various things including vehicle recovery, VIP escorts and protection, phone pings, debt collections and property evictions.
He said he bought the ping system from former cop David Goldblatt who had assured him it was lawful.
Kilian said he was given a username and password but was allegedly not the only person who had access to this.
He contested the ping lists, saying it was not official documentation from cellphone networks such as Vodacom and MTN.
“Authentic lists from Vodacom and MTN could show my personal pings, by indicating the correct ping operator/ originator, as well as the location of the ping operator/originator.
“Upon receipt and verification thereof, I would be willing to make admissions regarding my personal pings.
“I deny that the list and items allegedly downloaded from my cellphones are correct as I found that Captain Du Plessis included certain WhatsApps and photos not originating from me.”
The trial is set to resume today with the rest of the accused expected to make admissions.
During court proceedings this week Judge Robert Henney noted that one of the defence advocates had been diagnosed with Covid-19.