PORT ELIZABETH, December 9 (ANA) – A total of seven witnesses placed two men at the scene where a two-year-old girl was shot and killed after they allegedly recklessly fired shots towards a group of people, the Port Elizabeth High Court heard on Friday.
Closing arguments were heard in the trial of Marcus Malgas and Gregory Van Staden, accused of murdering Caydene Ruiters during a gang-related shooting in December last year.
Caydene was in front of a house with her mother, sister and four men when a stray bullet hit her in the back. The girl was taken to Livingstone hospital but was declared dead shortly after arrival.
“I submit witnesses could not have been mistaken with regard to the reliability of identification. It was more than six months down the line and they were able to identify both the accused at a formal identity parade,” State advocate Jason Thysse told the court.
Malgas earlier conceded to being outside the house in Barcelona, however, he denied firing any shots and said that the gun he had in his possession contained no bullets.
Van Staden on the other hand denied outright any involvement in the shooting and previously told the court that he was out of town the day the toddler was shot and killed.
Thysse argued that both their versions could not possibly be true and asked the court to accept the evidence of witness Eon Daries.
“I submit he was a good witness who openly admitted to being a member of the Gazas gang, he said that both accused were at the scene with firearms where shots went off. However, he was not able to say who fired the shots,” said Thysse.
The men charged with the toddler’s murder are apparently leaders in a notorious gang, “Sestien Honde” (Sixteen Dogs), and have pleaded not guilty to 11 charges which include murder, attempted murder and unlawful possession of firearm and ammunition.
Earlier this week, a witness testified that Daries, who is affiliated with a rival gang, was present in the group outside the house where the shooting took place, providing a possible motive for the attack.
Meanwhile, defence attorney Peet Schoonraad argued that the toddler’s mother Davidene and her sister Tamlynn could not be seen as reliable witnesses because they were extremely “traumatised”.
Schoonraad argued that the child’s father, Ricardo, was just as shocked and did not know what was going on around him at the time of the incident as everything was “chaotic”.
He reiterated that none of the witnesses could actually say who fired the shots which resulted in the toddler losing her life.
Judge Onika Van Papendorp will deliver her judgement on Monday.
– African News Agency (ANA)
