Port Elizabeth – In the most graphic evidence led during Christopher
Panayiotou’s murder trial to date, the State on Monday showed photos of his
wife Jayde’s body lying in the field where she was killed.
Port
Elizabeth High Court Judge Dayalin Chetty advised people in the public gallery
to leave the court if they did not want to see them.
Jayde’s
sister Toni Inggs, her mother Michelle Inggs, and colleague and friend Cherise
Swanepoel stayed in their seats.
A photo
of Jayde’s body, lying in the distance, had already been shown during testimony
last week.
Forensic
expert Warrant Officer Phillip Bekker began his testimony by showing images
setting out the location of the crime scene and the location of evidence,
including tyre tracks and footprints.
As image
after image of Jayde’s body were displayed on the screen in court, Toni fought
back tears and stared resolutely forward, tissue clasped in one hand and her
mother’s hand tightly in the other.
Michelle, tears flowing, slowly nodded as each slide showed up on
the screen.
Christopher Panayiotou’s mother Fanoula blew her nose. His father
Costa stared at his son in the dock.
Panayiotou,
Sinethemba Nenembe, and Zolani Sibeko are on trial on charges of conspiring, kidnapping,
robbing, and killing Jayde on April 21 last year. They pleaded not guilty.
Sizwezakhe
Vumazonke, believed to be the hitman hired by State witness Luthando Siyoni,
died in a Port Elizabeth hospital in September.
Jayde was abducted from outside her Kabega
Park townhouse complex while waiting for Swanepoel to give her a lift to
Riebeek College Girls' High School in Uitenhage, where they both worked as
teachers. She was shot dead in field outside KwaNobuhle and found on April
22.
Shot
3 times
Bekker,
the forensic specialist called to the scene, told the court he found Jayde
fully dressed; her legs together. Her right arm was slightly extended. Her left
arm was over her chest, clenched in a fist.
She was
shot three times, in the chest, arm, and head. Bekker said the bullet wound to
the head showed she was shot in close proximity to the ground.
The
court was shown a close-up of her face. Her head was in a pool of blood.
Christopher
showed little emotion. His face occasionally turned red. Sometimes he looked
down at his feet.
Sibeko
and Nenembe covered their faces.
The trial continues Tuesday morning.
