Missing witness delays hit murder trial

"I want you to do your job. You know what to do, someone is obstructing justice - you don’t expect me to tell you what to do, so go and do your job."

These words, spoken by Port Elizabeth High Court judge Bulelwa Pakati to an investigating officer in a murder trial, caused the case to be rolled over to Thursday to allow Sergeant TE Nobebe to bring a man to court to explain why he was not willing to co-operate with the police.

Nobebe had taken over the case of an alleged hit murder on Thomas Ernest Hammond who was shot and killed while walking along a street in Kleinskool with his young daughter in December 2017.

Nobebe claimed that after taking over the case on July 19 2019, she had on at least two occasions visited the father of the witness to find out the whereabouts of his 19-year-old son.

Neither the father of the witness nor the witness himself is being named as it is not clear if either will be placed under witness protection.

The witness is being sought to give evidence against taxi driver Vuyolwetu Mankonkwana, 28, and alleged gangster Fabian Fillis, 24, who face charges of murder and the illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition.

They pleaded not guilty.

According to the indictment before court, Mankonkwana and Fillis had some form of vendetta against Hammond which allegedly led to the murder.

Under cross-examination on Wednesday by advocate Jodine Coertzen representing Mankonkwana, Nobebe said it was not that she did not have enough time to locate the witness, but rather that the father was reluctant to assist her.

"The problem is [the father's] reluctance to let his son come and testify, especially since his other son was shot and is now paralysed after he testified in a similar case," Nobebe claimed.

Nobebe said she had information that the witness was in Cape Town, but when asked by advocate Johan van der Spuy, for Fillis, whether she had opened a docket against the father for allegedly obstructing the ends of justice, she said it did not occur to her to do that.

"It did not occur to me to open a docket because I also considered the reason [the father] gave to me.

"I then decided to come to court and explain the reason to the court and  then - if necessary - by the direction of the court, I would go ahead [and subpoena the father]," Nobebe said.

Asked by Pakati if she felt she had done enough to bring the witness to the court, Nobebe said "no".

Nobebe said she would find the father and bring him to court to explain his reasoning for not co-operating.

Warrant Officer Benjamin Killian said when he took down the statement from the witness the day after the murder, the witness was visibly upset.

"I could see he was afraid," Killian said.

According to Killian, the man had called him and begged him to be removed from the case because he feared for his life a few days' after giving the statement.