I missed my son’s tombstone erection due to Kekana’s arrest: witness

A state witness in the trial of Vusimusi “Cat” Matlala has told a court that helping Musa Kekana with a car’s wheel rim on the day police arrested him in connection with the murder of Vereeniging engineer Armand Swart led to him missing the installation of his late son’s tombstone.

Kekana is charged alongside Vusimusi “Cat” Matlala, his wife Tsakane Matlala, Tiego Floyd Mabusela, and his daughter Nthabiseng Nzama. They face 25 counts, including conspiracy to commit murder, money laundering and the attempted murders of actor and Matlala’s ex-girlfriend Tebogo Thobejane, and taxi boss Joe “Ferrari” Sibanyoni.

A trial-within-a-trial is currently underway in the Johannesburg high court examining the evidence collected during Kekana’s arrest for Swart’s murder, in which guns found at the scene were linked to the shooting.

Testifying at the trial-within-a-trial on Monday, the witness said he was at a house on 8th Road in Kew, Johannesburg, where he runs a motor vehicle restoration and customisation business from his in‑laws’ premises.

The witness, who cannot be named, said he had known Kekana for six years through his wife’s brother, and their relationship had been more business than personal.

On April 17, he received a call from Kekana that he needed a Mercedes-Benz wheel rim.

“I had an appointment as well on that day and was very clear to say, ‘I’m leaving at 8 o’clock’ because they were installing my son’s tombstone on that day.”

He said Kekana arrived between 7.30am and 8am with another man he did not know. “While we were discussing the specs on the rim, four police cars arrived.

“Police officers jumped out, shot a few shots, told us to get down, and then we were cuffed. Some of the guys went into the house. Some of the guys were attending to us − me, Musa and that other gentleman,” he said.

He said Kekana was taken away by the policemen, but he saw him again in the afternoon when the officers he had left with returned with him. “He was coughing blood, and had asked for medical attention.”

The witness said a paramedic attended to Kekana before an ambulance took him away.

Later at Kekana’s residence, he said, the questioning continued. “At that point I was frustrated because I didn’t know what was going on.

“I didn’t do the most important thing that I was supposed to do that day, and that was eating away at me incredibly,” he said.

“It was very upsetting. So I eventually started just throwing in the towel, like, ‘Do what you want to do,’ because I can’t explain myself any more than I’ve explained myself.”

He told the court he was released between 8pm and 9pm, was never charged, and later made a witness statement.