5 years on, 5th accused faces Knysna CIT murder trial

KNYSNA NEWS - Almost exactly five years after the brutal murder of a Fidelity Cash Solutions security official, who was shot at point-blank range multiple times near the Pick n Pay in the Knysna CBD, a fifth suspect has been arrested and charged.

The 43-year-old Sivuyile Koyo appeared in the Knysna Magistrate's Court on 2 September for the continuation of his opposed formal bail hearing.

He remains in custody, and the judgment on his bail application is scheduled for 8 October. The trial of all five accused is due to commence on 13 October.

The other four accused are Mzoxolo Bhushula (32), Masonwabe Yizana (35), Ntobeko Mehlwana (39) and Jeffrey Rumbu (55).

Defence challenges State's case
Koyo's defence attorney, Daan Dercksen, placed a replying affidavit and heads of argument on record, challenging the strength of the State's case against his client.

The defence argued that a bail court should not conduct the criminal trial in advance, but said the evidence disclosed by the State still had to be considered when assessing the alleged risks relevant to bail.

According to the defence, the State alleges that the deceased had been attacked by several people during the cash-in-transit robbery on 26 June 2021, and was shot and killed during the incident. The State further alleges that the perpetrators had fled in a grey Volkswagen Polo rented by another accused, with false registration plates later discarded.

Dercksen argued that the State did not allege that Koyo had rented the vehicle and had not identified fingerprint or other forensic evidence linking him to the vehicle or the false registration plates.

The defence said the case against Koyo appeared principally to rely on cellphone evidence. The State alleges that a cellphone number associated with Koyo communicated with numbers allegedly linked to some of his co-accused on the day of the robbery, and that cellphone data placed his phone near the crime scene.

The defence submitted that there was no direct evidence, based on the material disclosed to date, that Koyo had confronted the deceased, possessed or fired a firearm, shot the victim, possessed the stolen cash, or was an occupant or driver of the getaway vehicle.

It further argued there was no evidence linking Koyo to the disposal of the false registration plates or possession of the firearm that remains outstanding.

The defence also pointed to outstanding analysis of call data, including information from a cellphone recovered from Koyo, and the possible obtaining of further Section 205 subpoenas. These are defence submissions and have not been tested at trial.

2024 DNA breakthrough
The case dates back to 26 June 2021, when a Fidelity Cash Solutions security guard was collecting cash from a supermarket in Long Street, near Woodmill Lane, in Knysna.

According to the Hawks, two armed men had approached the guard and a struggle followed, during which the guard was shot three times and was fatally wounded.

The attackers allegedly took his service firearm and an undisclosed amount of cash.

A significant breakthrough came in 2024 when the Hawks arrested a 37-year-old man in Mthatha after DNA allegedly extracted from a cap and gloves recovered from the crime scene linked him to the robbery.

The suspect was arrested on 16 August 2024 during a multidisciplinary Hawks operation involving investigators from George and Mthatha, supported by tactical and tracking teams.

He was due to appear in the Knysna Magistrate's Court on charges of murder and robbery with aggravating circumstances, while also facing an unrelated 2017 house robbery case in George. At the time, the Hawks said Bhushula and Yizana had already been on trial.

Koyo was arrested on a warrant in Knysna on 24 June this year and charged with murder and robbery with aggravating circumstances.

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