Mihalik accused’s first court appearance
THE two men arrested for the murder of criminal lawyer Pete Mihalik have been remanded at the Sea Point police station for fear of being harmed at Pollsmoor.
Sizwe Biyela, 31, and Nkosinathi Khumalo, 26, from KwazuluNatal, appeared at the Cape Town Magistrate’s Court yesterday.
The State said it was its case that the murder was premeditated as “the offence was committed by a person, group of persons or syndicate acting in the execution of furtherance of a common purpose”.
Biyela and Khumalo were taken in for questioning and arrested just hours after the murder in Green Point on Tuesday.
They appeared in a heavily guarded and armed courtroom. The Anti-Gang Unit, who are heading up the investigation in the murder case, swept the courtroom before proceedings and maintained a strong presence throughout the suspects’ appearance.
Mihalik was shot dead while dropping his son off at Reddam House School just before 8am. His 8-year-old son, who was also in the vehicle, was wounded and rushed to hospital after a bullet lodged in his face.
Prosecutor Helene Booysen said the State might add further charges following further investigation.
Biyela and Khumalo each face a charge of murder, attempted murder, possession of unlicensed firearms and possession of ammunition.
Booysen said the charges were of a Schedule Six nature and added that one of the suspects was out on bail in another case “for another serious charge”.
Biyela, standing in the dock with no shoes, said he would accept SA Legal Aid representation, while Khumalo opted to appoint his own lawyer.
National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Eric Ntabazalila said it was not yet known which suspect was out on bail on another charge.
“It has not yet been mentioned which one of the two, but one of the two is out on bail in another matter which happened outside of this province. It is another serious matter and I think it’s related to a murder charge,” Ntabazalila said.
The case has been postponed to November 8.