Allegations that singer Kelly Khumalo ordered the hit on her late boyfriend Senzo Meyiwa will finally be tested in court after the Pretoria High Court ruled yesterday that confessions by two accused implicating her in the murder are admissible. 

Delivering his ruling in the trial-within-a trial on whether confessions by Muzi Sibiya and Bongani Ntanzi were admissible, Judge Ratha Mokgoatlheng told the court that the two confessed voluntarily, freely and were not coerced as they had claimed.

This means their written confessions and statements will now be used in the main trial to prosecute them and other people they might have implicated who are currently not suspects. 

Last year, state prosecutor Adv George Baloyi indicated that Khumalo was not in the list of state witnesses and that she will not be called to testify. 

The details about the contents of the confessions were first revealed in court in January when Brig Bongani Gininda, the lead investigator, read out his affidavit which linked the two accused directly to Khumalo.

Gininda said both men implicated Khumalo as the person who orchestrated the hit on Meyiwa and that Sibiya went even further to point out the crime scene and demonstrated how the murder was planned and executed from a hostel in Vosloorus, Ekurhuleni.

 Gininda said Sibiya stated that he was not the shooter though he was able to accurately indicate that Meyiwa was shot in the chest. This part of the confession matched with evidence previously heard in the main trial. 

Ntanzi, who was identified as the second intruder with a hoodie, also allegedly implicated Khumalo in the murder, claimed Gininda. 

He had further told the court that through cellphone tracing the police could link Khumalo with other accused Mthobisi Mncube and Fisokuhle Ntuli.  Last year, police cellphone data analyst Col Lambertus Steyn told the high court that Ntuli had called Khumalo just weeks before Meyiwa was gunned down. 

“It was further discovered that through cellphone analysts her [Khumalo’s] cellphone memory album has the same photo of a see-through bag containing cash notes and in the exact position or location of that of Mncube’s,” Gininda said.

“There is no reasonable explanation as to why Kelly [Khumalo] will be in contact telephonically with a hitman or killers of her boyfriend and share the same picture of a bag full of money,” Gininda told the court at the time. 

Yesterday, both defence and the state indicated that the matter would now move to the main trial where new witnesses will be called. 

Reacting to yesterday’s ruling on the admissibility of the confessions, legal experts said the state had a strong case against the accused.

“It will weigh about 80% and the rest of it will come from technical compliance. They [the state] will have to prove that they collected all available evidence... that can be accepted in court. The ruling has made the work of the state much, much easier,” legal analyst Mpumelelo Zikalala said.

He further said the defence will now face a challenge to undo the confessions and their credibility. 

“They will have to prove that their clients were not at that particular place at that particular time. They will have to prove that the confession does not apply with the constitutional right guiding them and that their clients were not involved, they don’t own a gun and also produce an alibi.

"They will have to prove that they were branded and if they fail to prove that their chances to win will be low,” explained Zikalala. 

Legal expert Ulrich Roux also echoed Zikalala’s sentiments. 

“The defence will now have to focus on the evidence led by the state and whether they can prove any doubt pertaining to that. They are in a very difficult spot. One would like to see how this plays out.”

The NPA welcomed the ruling.  

“We have been dealing with this trial-within-a-trial for five months, so to get here it’s a relief. We will now continue with the main trial so that the Meyiwa family can get justice for the death of Senzo Meyiwa. As the NPA we have proof that the five accused that are in the dock did actually kill Meyiwa,” said NPA spokesperson Lumka Mahanjana.

Ntanzi, Sibiya, Mncube, Mthokoziseni Maphisa and Ntuli are accused of killing Meyiwa at Khumalo’s mother’s home in Vosloorus on October 26 2014.

However, those who were in the house have maintained that the incident was a robbery gone wrong.