Port Elizabeth - Many people in the public gallery sighed in frustration in the Christopher
Panayiotou trial courtroom as Judge Dayalin Chetty adjourned for the day
without the State calling Luthando Siyoni to the witness stand.
Siyoni,
a body builder, worked as a bouncer for Panayiotou at his Infinity Pub and
Grub, and is alleged to have acted as a middleman, hiring Sizwezake
Vumazonke to murder Panayiotou's wife Jayde.
Siyoni
subsequently became a Section 204 witness and the charges against him were
withdrawn in August last year.
Panayiotou,
Sinethemba Nenembe and Zolani Sibeko are facing charges of conspiring,
kidnapping, robbery and murder after Jayde was killed on April 21 last
year.
They
pleaded not guilty.
Vumazonke
died in hospital in September.
Claim witness
was assaulted
At the
beginning of the trial Panayiotou asked in his plea explanation that the court
consider a trial within a trial when it came to the admissibility of the
evidence led by Siyoni.
He
alleged that Siyoni's testimony implicating him had been obtained by the
police assaulting Siyoni, and therefore any evidence led was tainted and needed
to be ruled inadmissible.
Earlier
on Thursday, State prosecutor Marius Stander argued that there were no grounds
for a trial within a trial relating to the admissibility of Siyoni's
evidence.
He
pointed out that there was no case law to substantiate having a trial within a
trial when it came to Section 204 witnesses.
Advocate
Terry Price SC, acting on behalf of Panayiotou, argued that Siyoni had still
been an accused at the time of his confession and was at that stage not a
Section 204 witness.
Chetty
then ruled that the evidence would be led as part of the main trial.
Following
the ruling the court adjourned until 14:15.
- Read the article here: No trial-within-a-trial for bouncer in Panayiotou case
Outstanding
documentation
A large
crowd had gathered outside the High Court waiting for the gates to reopen at
14:00 and Court A was packed, with not an open seat in the public gallery as
people came to hear Siyoni's testimony.
However,
they left disappointed because shortly after court
reconvened Siyoni's attorney, Zolile Ngqeza, requested that the court
adjourn for the day.
Ngqeza
said there was certain documentation that he needed to be made available
so that he could advise his client accordingly.
"I
would not be fulfilling my duties should I allow the matter to resume without
that documentation. I will do my best to finalise the matter so that we can
resume tomorrow," he said.
Stander
said all the documentation relating to the case was available in electronic
format and could be made available should a memory stick or similar storage
device be provided.
Before
adjourning for the day Chetty cautioned Ngqeza, telling him to ensure his
client was in court at 09:00 on Friday.
The
trial resumes on Friday at 09:00.
