Tumelo Madlala told the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria that after the shooting that led to the death of his soccer star friend Senzo Meyiwa, he didn’t think of dialling 10111 as he had never dialled the emergency number before.
Madlala was cross-examined on Tuesday by advocate Sipho Ramosepele, who represents two men who are among the five accused in the murder trial.
Ramosepele’s line of questioning related to evidence presented by Colonel Lambertus Steyn — an analyst and investigating officer at the SAPS Cold Case Unit — who told the court that from the phone analysis no one in the house called police or the emergency number when Meyiwa was shot.
Ramosepele grilled Madlala on why he failed to call for help as he was locked in the room and had his cellphone.
Madlala replied: “I don’t know how I was in the position to ask for help. It was my first time in that house. The only people I knew were those people who were in the house.”
“How about maybe by calling 10111?” Ramosepele asked.
“I have never dialled that number. You see, when you are in a situation, it’s a different story. When you have never been in a situation, it’s easy to say, why didn’t you do that or do this? But when you are confronted with a situation, you experience it differently,” Madlala replied.
Zandile Khumalo, who has already testified, told the court that she didn’t call for help using her cellphone because after the shooting, she had a mind block and instead, she ran to the neighbours for help.
Meyiwa was gunned down on October 26, 2014 while visiting his singer girlfriend Kelly Khumalo in an alleged botched robbery.
The people who were in the house on the day Meyiwa was murdered, were Kelly Khumalo and her younger sister, Zandile, their mother Ntombi Khumalo (MaKhumalo), Longwe Twala, Meyiwa’s friends, Mthokozisi Thwala and Tumelo Madlala, Kelly’s then four-year-old son, Christian, and Thingo, her daughter with Meyiwa.
Muzikawukhulelwa Sibiya, Bongani Sandiso Ntanzi, Mthobisi Mncube, Mthokoziseni Maphisa and Sifisokuhle Ntuli are on trial for the murder.
The trial will continues.
IOL