Cops planted gun on Marikana accused, court told

Man testifies at bail hearing that police also beat him up to get him to confess

RUSTENBURG: The police planted a firearm on one of the six suspects accused of killing a man in Marikana, the Rustenburg Magistrate’s Court, sitting in Tlhabane, heard yesterday.

William Nyenyane told the court that the police arrested him on January 5 at his workplace and beat him to admit that he was a part of a group who killed Sabata Petros Chale, 39, in Marikana West on December 8.

“The police pointed firearms at me, handcuffed me and beat me up. They took me to my car where three searched it while the others continued to beat me.

“Later, a gun was placed at my waist and they took photographs of me with the gun on me,” he told the court during his bail application.

He testified that the police put him in a minibus taxi and drove to a bushy area where his head was covered and they beat him up. He was suffocating, and told the police he wanted to talk.

He said he was taken to a police station where he was charged with murder.

In his bail application, Nyenyane told the court he was married to two women and has four children. His wives were unemployed and he was the sole breadwinner for his family. He said his family would suffer if he remained in custody.

The State alleges that Nyenyane, Aubrey Seitsang, Sibonile Sobopha, Mdlondozi Fundiwo, Herbert Baqhesi and Napoleon Webster hacked Chale to death in Marikana West over the allocation of RDP houses.

Nyenyane admitted to being part of a group of people who marched to Marikana police station to complain about the services rendered at the police station.

The State alleges that after the march, the group went to Chale and killed him.

The case was postponed to Monday for further evidence.

The defence is expected to call Nyenyane’s brother to testify in support of his bail application.

The court also heard that Webster was never near the murder scene or at Marikana police station.

University of Johannesburg student Zwalekhe Mahlangu told the court he was with Webster and journalist Sipho Singiswa in Marikana’s central business district.

He said he went to print posters and Webster was at Shoprite to arrange food for students he was hosting.

Singiswa had driven them to Marikana central.

Meanwhile, the Forum 4 Service Delivery (F4SD) said it was concerned that Webster was being harassed and targeted politically by the current system through the Hawks.

“F4SD further believes that Webster is being targeted for his vocal and effective calling for Lonmin to fulfil its Mining Charter obligations.

“F4SD also believes that the prosecution is being used to criminalise and thereby discredit community leaders and activists such as Webster because of his strong and consistent calling for those responsible for and implicated in the Marikana massacre to be charged,” its national convener Mbahare Kekana said.