Sinoxolo rape, murder accused with criminal reputation
Two men gained a reputation for criminal behaviour before being accused of raping and killing teen Sinoxolo Mafevuka, the Khayelitsha Magistrate's Court heard yesterday.
Investigating officer, Constable Bakiti Tshabalala, revealed that he had obtained sworn statements from a number of residents who claimed the men were criminals.
The State argued that this information during their bail applications was relevant as it pointed to the men's character.
However, the defence argued it was not evidence as no police cases had been opened to date.
The court provisionally allowed the testimony.
Tshabalala testified that the men used to live in BM section but were chased away.
"The community has indeed confirmed they do know the accused and they left the area after they did rape in that area and were chased away," he said.
He told the court the woman, whose identity they knew, never opened a case.
"I was told there was an argument made by the family of the victim and the accused, and an amount of R5 000 was paid."
Gasps rose from the public gallery.
Mafevuka's naked body was found sprawled over the seat of a communal toilet in SST section.
Her boyfriend's cousins, aged 21 and 26, were arrested in March, two weeks after her body was found.
Tshabalala said a SST resident claimed he saw the men raping an unknown woman late one weekend while the shacks were still under construction.
While he could not remember the date, the man said he saw the first accused throw a brick into the back of a woman's head. She fell to the ground.
The witness claimed she was dragged to a shack. There she was raped while the men allegedly took turns to keep watch before running away, said Tshabalala.
The investigating officer said many rapes happened in that section and it was thus difficult to determine whether a case was opened.
"To find the right one [case]…" he said, shaking his head.
In another incident, a woman told police that one of the accused demanded her cellphone at gunpoint while she was walking.
Apparently, the other accused stopped him because he knew her boyfriend.
"Her phone was not taken so she did not open a case," Tshabalala said.
(File photo: Getty Images)