Details of hit on Jayde to be revealed in court

Step-by-step details of the alleged hit on Jayde Panayiotou are expected to be revealed in court on Monday‚ when the men arrested in connection with her murder appear in Port Elizabeth.

Thando Siyoli‚ a bouncer at a club owned by Jayde’s husband Christopher Panayiotou and who is believed to have turned state witness against him‚ reportedly gave detectives a recap of the plot to kill her.

Panayiotou was taken outside her apartment building last Tuesday and her body found in KwaNobuhle in Uitenhage the next day.

As the news broke that Siyoli was cutting a plea deal with police‚ it emerged that Christopher Panayiotou was allegedly having an affair with another woman.

Police have quizzed 26-year-old Chanelle Coutts‚ who managed a supermarket owned by him.

Sources said he and Coutts‚ who is strikingly similar in looks to the Jayde Panayiotou‚ were often seen together in and around the shopping complex where they worked.

They were said to be “very affectionate“.

A car guard at the complex‚ Ashwil Swart‚ claimed that after he had been beaten for shoplifting‚ he had warned Panayiotou that he would tell his wife about his skelm (mistress).

“I used to see them together often‚ he would touch her and they would sit together in the car. She is very pretty and very young. The truth must come out‚” said Swart.

A friend of Coutts‚ however‚ said the allegations of an affair were untrue.

“She is a very relaxed girl. But I haven’t seen her in a long time. She works with Chris and they only had a working relationship‚” said the friend‚ who did not want to be named.

As he was bidding a tearful farewell to Jayde at her funeral last Tuesday‚ undercover policemen pretending to be mourners were monitoring his every move.

After being arrested following a tip-off Siyoli‚ agreed to set up a sting operation by ‚ demanding more money due to the “hype” around the murder to trap Christopher Panayiotou.

A meeting was set up in Uitenhage last Wednesday and the money was paid over to Siyoli‚ witnessed by undercover police.

Panayiotou was arrested at his parents’ home in Uitenhage at about 11 that night after the National Prosecuting Authority had confirmed the sting operation was solid.

A source said the prosecuting authority had given the go-ahead for the arrest based on evidence that had been obtained.

Panayiotou’s uncle‚ Peter Becker — who originally offered a reward for Jayde’s safe return or information leading to the arrest of the culprits – on Sunday said the family were “devastated and shocked” by his arrest.

“Everyone is very emotional and surprised‚ as one could imagine. We are all shocked more than anything else. From what I have heard from the family‚ he [Panayiotou] is maintaining his innocence. The police are also not telling us much‚ so we are not sure what evidence they are talking about.

“This whole situation is just so unreal. When we got the news of his arrest‚ his father almost collapsed.

“Chris is just such a nice guy and it is literally incomprehensible. I can say that the family wants to see the proof that the police say they have. This is just such a sad‚ traumatic incident for both families and it is almost like we have lost two people now‚ him and her.

“We believe that whoever is responsible‚ regardless of who it is‚ needs to be dealt with by the justice system. The law must follow its course and whoever is guilty must pay.”

Becker said a R100 000 reward was offered for information leading to the arrest and prosecution of the man believed to have pulled the trigger — who is still on the run.

“Regardless of who is currently in custody‚ this man must not be allowed to run around free. He is very dangerous and needs to be taken off the streets‚” he said.