Thulisile Mapongwana
The inquest into the 1993 Highgate Massacre continued at the East London Special Tribunal in Vincent on Monday, with two police officers taking the stand.
Johannes du Plessis and Colonel Victor van der Merwe were part of the initial investigation into the deadly shooting.
Du Plessis was responsible for photographing evidence that night, while Victor van der Merwe is a ballistic expert.
He said he captured images of cartridges, the deceased victims, a projectile, and levers belonging to a grenade and teargas canister.
Du Plessis also asked Edward Lombard, who fired back at the gunmen, to reenact how he shot from behind the bar counter.
It was revealed during the inquest last week that blood allegedly belonging to the suspect was found on the scene, as it could not be linked to any of the deceased or the survivors.
Also Read: Highgate survivors visit site of 1993 massacre
Meanwhile, Colonel Van der Merwe testified that he found more than 50 bullet holes inside the pub.
He said that the area that was known as the “ladies bar” had no holes in the walls, even though it was an area where most of the victims were found.
“It is safe to assume that the bullets hit their targets as there were no holes in the walls.” Van der Merwe said.
He added that the cartridges found at the scene suggest that two AK-47 rifles were used in the attack.
Colonel Victor van der Merwe continued his evidence on Tuesday morning, cross-examined by Advocate Howard Varney, representing the survivors of the massacre.
Based on evidence that two AK-47 rifles were used that night, Van der Merwe agreed that there was likely at least one gunman in the ladies' bar and another in the men’s area.
However, due to the missing spent cartridges, he could not confirm whether the rifles had ever been recovered or linked to any other crimes over the past 32 years.
He explained that if the cartridges were still available, they could have been entered into a system to check for matches.
Advocate Varney said it was unfortunate that crucial evidence had been misplaced over the years.
The Colonel confirmed that post-mortem reports showed all victims were shot with rifles, evident from the large and torn exit wounds.
Van der Merwe also admitted that the case docket went missing—in addition to the fingerprints and spent cartridges collected from the scene.
Royce Wheeler, Derek Whitfield, Stanley Hacking, Deon Harris, and Douglas Gates were the deceased.
Some with life-altering injuries survived were Neville Beling, Karl Weber, William Baling, Megan Boucher, Nkosinathi Gontshi (a hotel barman), Doreen Rossouw, and Charles Bodington.
The inquest continues, with an ammunition and explosives expert, Charl Naude, expected to take the stand on Tuesday afternoon.
Read More: Survivor suspects Hammer Unit behind 1993 Highgate Hotel shooting.
