A man accused of murdering two Pakistani nationals was beaten by the victims before he allegedly shot and killed them, the Grahamstown High Court heard on Tuesday.
Vukile Elliot Ndzima (37) of Sweetwaters, King William’s Town, faces two counts of murder and was on trial before Judge Clement Sangoni.
The state has alleged Ndzima shot and killed brothers Abbas Toqeer Gondal (26) and Ilyas Shoaib Gondal (21) on October 30 last year outside their cellphone shop in King William’s Town.
Ndzima, through his lawyer Mthuthuzeli Xozwa, has admitted shooting the men but pleaded not guilty on the grounds of temporary non-pathological incapacity. He is out on R1 500 bail.
The state’s indictment has indicated that an altercation between the accused and the two men arose when Ndzima tried to return a radio/cassette recorder valued at R80, and demanded a refund.
State witness Zwelethini Zindlani (35) told the court he was driving along Smith Street at about 10.45am when he saw two Pakistani men assaulting the accused in front of the shop.
”One of them was hitting him with fists, and the other had a half-brick in his hand and was clubbing the man on the back. The accused was knocked to the ground on his stomach. One of the Pakistani men had a knee in his back and was pinning him down.
”The accused was struggling to turn over, and then he suddenly produced a gun and shot one of the men in the stomach.”
He said one of the men [Abbas] fell into the road and the other man [Ilyas] ran towards the shop.
”The accused got up and walked to the man lying in the road and fired several shots into his head and back.”
Ndzima then shot the other man [Ilyas] in the back and he fell down on the shop steps.
”He [Ndzima] then walked up and stood over him and fired two shots into his head.”
Zindlani said he ran to a nearby shop for safety and called the police.
East London district surgeon Gibson Myendeki said he conducted the post mortem autopsies on the two men the following day.
”The two deceased were shot in the chest, back and head. The seven shots from a 9mm pistol were fired from close range, and the shots to the victims’ heads caused their deaths,” he said.
The trial continues. – Sapa