Investigating officer in AKA murder details payment to 'mastermind'
The lead detective of the team investigating the murders of Kiernan ‘AKA’ Forbes and Tebello Motsoane has disputed claims by one of the accused, that over R800 000 that was paid to him around the time of the killings was for legitimate work.
The bail application of five of the seven accused continued in the Durban Magistrate's Court on Wednesday.
In an affidavit, Warrant Officer Kumarasan Pillay described how his team linked the accused through witness statements, camera footage, ballistic evidence, cellphone tracking and bank records.
He revealed that about R803 000 was transferred to accused number four, Mziwethemba Gwabeni, by a company called, Bright Circle Ltd, under the reference "consult".
The transaction happened a day after Forbes and Motsoane were shot dead outside the WISH restaurant on Durban's Florida Road.
Pillay told the court his team believes the payment reference was used to disguise the nature of the funds.
They are convinced it was payment for the hit.
The court heard Gwabeni then transferred about R133 000 to three of his co-accused and to two brothers being held in eSwatini, using the reference "dividends".
Pillay says there's no proof the co-accused were shareholders in Gwabeni's business.
Gwabeni last week claimed the other suspects worked for his company as security guards, telling the court he hadn't paid them in a while, until that payment came through.
Officer Pillay revealed that the records of the company that made the transfer show the sole director as one Sydney Mfunda Gcaba.
He told the court that this was also the first time, that Gwabeni had received a payment from Bright Circle Ltd. Gwabeni claimed the payment was for consulting work he had done for the business over several years.
