Warrant Officer Thabo Mosia faced rigorous cross-examination as he returned to the witness stand on Tuesday in the Senzo Meyiwa murder trial.
Senzo Meyiwa trial: Thabo Mosia grilled in intense cross-examination
Thabo Mosia, a state witness, had previously testified about his role in collecting and processing evidence from the Vosloorus family home of Kelly Khumalo, Meyiwa’s then-girlfriend, where the former Bafana Bafana captain was fatally shot on 26 October 2014.
The defence had raised concerns about inconsistencies in his testimony and requested further clarification.
During cross-examination, the defence probed Mosia about his failure to collect crucial evidence at the crime scene and alleged compromises in its integrity.
Mosia revealed that he had left the Meyiwa murder scene to attend to two other crime scenes, returning to the Khumalo household around 06:00 on 27 October 2014.
However, his pocketbook, which records his movements, showed that he returned to the scene at 10:25. This discrepancy raised questions about the accuracy of his testimony.
In a previous court appearance, Mosia had complained that the witness stand affected his health.
He had since undergone a medical evaluation and claimed he was fit to testify. Advocate Zithulele Nxumalo, representing one of the accused, questioned Mosia about the dissimilarity between his court testimony and his pocketbook, recently provided to the defence.
Mosia defended his testimony by explaining that he had been forced to prepare without access to his pocketbook.
He stated that while on incapacity leave, he had to search for documents in Springs to prepare his evidence for court. Unfortunately, the documents were unavailable as they had been booked out by the provincial crime scene management.
This lack of access affected the accuracy of his preparation. He relied on statements made prior to testifying.
The defence also questioned Mosia about the correct time of his arrival at the crime scene on his second visit. Mosia expressed uncertainty about the time and suggested a potential error in his pocketbook entry.
He believed there was a mistake in the entry, as he remembered arriving at the scene earlier than the recorded time.
The trial resumes on Wednesday.
