The man who turned state witness in the trial of a group of men charged with shooting ten people at a drug post in Kariega, told the court on Wednesday, that the entire incident took just a few minutes.
Shane Arends was giving evidence against the six men accused of killing seven people, and wounding three others in the 2023 incident in Kwanobuhle.
On Tuesday, the charges were withdrawn against Arends in the Gqeberha Regional Court when the matter got underway.
Mzolisi Nyiki, Sinethemba Mahlahla, Unathi Debooi, Shafiek Jones, Lee Fortuin, and Rivaldo Baartman face numerous counts of murder, attempted murder as well as inciting a pattern of criminal gang activity, and performing an act aimed at bringing about, promoting or contributing towards a pattern of gang activity.
According to Arends, Nyiki arrived at the Hondekoppe gang’s alleged headquarters in Bethelsdorp in Gqeberha where he [Arends] had been drinking with Jones, Fortuin and Baartman and complained that his [Nyiki] drug post had been robbed.
The state accuses Nyiki, who allegedly operated a drug post in Kwanobuhle in Kariega, of issuing a verbal threat against a rival drug dealer, Thulani Matyu, who operated out of a place in Mdlele Street, also in Kwanobuhle.
This allegedly followed "recent conflict" between alleged drug runners working for the two men.
Arends said Nyiki then instructed them to go and shoot the rival drug dealer to “pass a message.”
When asked by state prosecutor Mark Driman why they did not hesitate to act on this instruction, Arends said; “We [Hondekoppe] supply Nyiki with drugs therefore, we needed to protect him so that he does not find another supplier.”
“Jones, Fortuin, Baartman and I then took loaded firearms and drove with Mahlahla and Debooi in Nyiki’s car to shoot at Matyu and his friends.”
Arends said Mahlahla and Debooi pointed out the drug post, and they walked to the house after being dropped off a distance away.
“As we approached the drug post, I stopped to tie my shoelaces while the others walked in, and I told them I would act as lookout at the gate while they pulled the trigger.”
Arends further said after the shooting, they fled the scene hastily and returned to Gqeberha to inform Nyiki, the alleged mastermind, that the job was finished.
“The drive back to Gqeberha was so tense, we just wanted to get away from Kariega,” he added.
When they finally arrived back at the headquarters in Gqeberha, the men ran inside, put their firearms away, and drank further until the next morning.
Meanwhile, Nyiki’s 15-page plea statement was read out in court by his attorney, Natie Heyns, in which he denied all of the charges against him.
He further denied ordering the deaths of an alleged rival drug dealer and his associations or that he had acted “in the furtherance of a common purpose or conspiracy”, and that he had “unlawfully and intentionally killed” the seven people who died in a hail of bullets at Kariega drug post.
Nyiki also denied being a member of the "hondekoppe" gang, as alleged by the state.
"Although I admit to previously dealing in drugs, I no longer did so on the date in question.
"Accordingly, I deny operating a rival drug outlet in Kwanobuhle in competition with Thulani Matyu.
"Although I admit shortly prior to the incident, an event took place between Matyu and one of my friends Abongile, whom at the time was also dealing in drugs," Nyiki said.
He said he visited Matyu's house to try and deal with the issue between Abongile and Matyu, but denied making any threats.
He admitted visiting a house in Bethelsdorp that the state alleges is the "headquarters" of the "criminal gang", but Nyiki said it was only a stopover on the way to hospital to visit a friend who was wounded in a shooting incident
He said they ended having drinks with a group of other people, including some of the co-accused, and ended up not going to the hospital.
Nyiki said he had borrowed his car to one of the men to fetch his girlfriend in Kariega, and also to fetch Matyu, whom he said he knew, so that they could discuss the issues between him and Abongile.
He said when the other co-accused returned from Kariega they had informed him that "something bad" had happened, initially thinking that his vehicle might have been in an accident.
"Accused number 3 (Unathi Debooi) however advised me that there was a shoot- out at Thulani’s house and that people were shot. I tried to get more information from Accused number 3 but he just maintained that people were shot at Thulani’s house," Nyiki said.
He said further that although none of my co- accused, admitted that they were involved in any shooting at Thulani’s house, I suspected that accused numbers 5 (Lee Irvan Fortuin) and 6 (Shane Arends) could have be involved, after I had noticed they each had a spin barrel revolver in their possession when they returned from Kwanobuhle.
"Had I known that they had firearms in their possession, which could have resulted in a shoot- out at Thulani’s place, I would not have allowed Accused number 5 and 7 to accompany Accused number 2 and 3 to Kwanobuhle and in particular, Thulani’s place," he said.
The matter postponed to 17 March for cross-examination of Arends.
Also Read: Kariega murder accused plead not guilty to multiple charges
