Tyololo trial: Councillor testifies

Update

KNYSNA NEWS - The trial of the last man arrested for the murder of Victor Molosi resumed in the Knysna Magistrate Court this week after it was postponed two weeks ago.

Mandla Tyololo (41) appeared briefly on Monday 2 March, as well as one of three witnesses for the state, Mandla Matiwane (40), the Ward 7 councillor in Knysna.

Former Ward 4 councillor Velile Waxa, former municipal official Mawande Makhala and Capetonian Vela Patrick Dumile were convicted in December last year of Molosi's murder. He was gunned down outside his home in Concordia on the evening of 23 July 2018.

Matiwane under cross-examination by Bulelani Bans, testified that he and Tyololo contested for a position in the ANC 2016 ward committee elections and although Matiwane had achieved victory as ward councillor, he and Tyololo shared good relations.

Matiwane admitted his relationship with Molosi had soured from December 2016 after Molosi had accused him (Matiwane) of wanting to murder him. He testified that "everyone present" at a public meeting had known about the accusation.

The councillor testified that Moses Shogole, key witness for the state, came to his house after he (Shogole) had visited the deceased's home on 16 January 2017. He said Shogole had told him during the visit that there were people who had collected between R300 000 and R320 000 to murder Molosi.

Matiwane said Moses did not mention names of the people behind the assassination.

He further told the court he had informed national deputy minister of police Bongani Mkongi about what Shogole had told him, about the money collected, and that Mkongi had assured him people from Intelligence ''will pick it up".

According to Shogole's statement read out in court by Bans, Matiwane and Molosi had been warned by him (Shogole) to take the matter up with the police. Matiwane told the court he was not around when Shogole said that he had warned them but was in a meeting in Cape Town.