In preparation for his bail application in the Hillary Gardee murder trial, accused Philemon Lukhele’s attorneys have written to the state seeking clarity on the charge sheet.

In the letter addressed to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), the police and the clerk of the court, the defence said they are not sure about some aspects of the charge sheet, such as the cause of death of the deceased, the time or approximate time of death and the place of death.

In their letter, they are asking the police and the NPA whether a postmortem was conducted on the deceased.

“Kindly urgently inform us whether or not, in the process of investigation, a postmortem on the deceased was ever conducted, either by the state or any party,” reads the letter.

The attorneys said if the answer is yes, they want the state to grant the defence access to the name of the person who conducted the postmortem, the actual postmortem report and to have the person who prepared the postmortem report available for purposes of consultation.

“As you are aware, you are entitled to be present during the consultation, and record what transpires during the consultation. We are amenable to any of any other reasonable conditions you might set,” reads the letter.

They told the state it needs to indicate its willingness to assist them by close of business on Thursday.

If no response is received, they have instructions to approach an appropriate court to have access to the requested information, they said.

Meanwhile, Lukhele’s legal counsel, Adv Nqobizitha Mlilo, told TimesLIVE that his client, together with the other accused, Sipho Mkhatshwa, were allegedly assaulted in their prison cells on Sunday.

“We confirm that as soon as our clients informed us of the [alleged] assault, and verbal abuse, we lodged a complaint with the Human Rights Commission,” Mlilo said.

Spokesperson for the department of correctional services Singabakho Nxumalo said the department is not aware of such allegations.

“What is on the record is that there [was a search of the correctional facility] by officials, including the section where inmate Lukhele is detained. This is part of our security procedures. Any inmate alleging to have been assaulted must be referred to our medical section for examination,” Nxumalo said. 

Gardee was kidnapped in Mbombela on April 29 while on her way home from the shops with her adopted three-year-old daughter.  Police allege she was murdered at a lodge owned by Lukhele which he rented out as accommodation for university students.

The case will be back in court on July 22. 

TimesLIVE