The trial of the self-confessed middleman in the murder of school teacher Jayde Panayiotou saw another postponement in the Port Elizabeth High Court on Monday.
The trial of Luthando Siyoni has already been postponed multiple times previously and has now been pushed out to the 24th of May.
That’s to allow his new lawyer, Advocate Sipokazi Cubungu of the PE Bar, time to consult with him and for the dockets to be transferred.
His longtime lawyer Zolile Ngqeza withdrew from the matter last month without giving an explanation.
Siyoni was a State witness in the case against Jayde's husband Christopher, who was found guilty of her murder and conspiracy to commit murder following the abduction and death of his wife in April of 2015.
Siyoni, who worked for Panayiotou as a bouncer at the time, was declared a hostile witness when he suddenly decided to change his story by refusing to answer questions from the State.
He’s already been in custody as an awaiting trial prisoner for almost three years.
Due to Siyoni losing his status as a 204 State Witness during the Panayiotou trial, he will now be facing the same charges of murder and conspiracy to commit murder.
In the main trial, Siyoni confessed to his role in sourcing a hitman and implicated Panayiotou as the one behind the plan to have his wife murdered.
In his Section 204 statement, Siyoni described how he had been approached by Panayiotou to find a hitman to murder his wife Jayde, and how, after a few failed attempts, he had contracted Sizwe Vumazonke, the alleged hitman to commit the act.
Vumazonke subsequently died in hospital and never stood trial for the murder.
In an undercover police sting operation, Panayiotou implicated himself in his wife's murder.
This confession was recorded in a secret police video which led to a trial within a trial that played out in court.
The video sent shockwaves throughout the community of Nelson Mandela Bay and sealed Panayiotou's fate – he is now serving a life sentence for Jayde’s murder.
Siyoni’s conduct during the Panayiotou trial was criticised by Judge Dayalin Chetty who, in his judgment, called his testimony "a cocktail of lies, perjury and contrivances" designed to advance Panayiotou's defence.
Jayde Panayiotou went missing on the 21st of April 2015.
She was abducted outside her Stellen Glen Complex in Kabega Park while waiting for her lift to Riebeek College for Girls where she was a much-loved teacher.
Jayde was subsequently murdered on the outskirts of KwaNobuhle.
According to a report published in Netwerk24 in April this year, Christopher Panayiotou's name is on the State's witness list for its trial against Siyoni.
