An uncle and his 19-year-old nephew accused of murdering and robbing a petrol station attendant appeared in the Grahamstown High Court on Monday, and pleaded not guilty.
On trial for murder and robbery with aggravating circumstances before Judge Cecil Somyalo, were Katiso Mapeyi (27) and his nephew Ayanda Mapeyi, both of Site N-56, Barkly East.
The pair are accused of stabbing to death Johannes Mokok (52) at the Barkly East Toyota service station, on the evening of October 1 2005.
The state alleges that Mokoko was robbed of R1  900 in cash which belonged to the garage.
In his plea explanation, the elder Mapeyi claimed he was ”not at the scene of the crime because he was at his home with a friend when the crimes were committed”.
His nephew, through his lawyer Deon Geldenhuys, told the court that he ”would deny any involvement in the offences, or that he was present when the incident took place”.
Fellow petrol attendant and state witness Albert Hlanjwa, told the court he was on duty with Mokoko at 11pm that evening, but had gone to a nearby café to get something to eat.
”When I got back I found Mokoko lying on the floor in the duty room in a pool of blood. He had an Okapi knife stuck in his neck, and there was another knife by his side. He did not show any signs of life.
Shown the Okapi knife by senior state advocate Selwyn Gounden, Hlanjwa said it was ”the same or similar to the one he saw sticking in the deceased’s neck”.
Local tavern owner Zithule Joko, told the court he had gone to the service station after he had closed his tavern.
”When I got there no one came out to serve me. I blew my hooter several times but there was no response. I went to the office and saw him [Mokoko] lying on the floor.
”There was blood everywhere and he was no longer blinking his eyes. I think he was already dead. I pulled out my cellphone and called the police, who arrived very quickly.”
The trial continues. – Sapa