Cape Town - One of the men accused in the murder of lawyer Pete Mihalik insists he was not the trigger man who killed him.
Sizwe Biyela, Nkosinathi Khumalo and Vuyile Maliti are on trial, charged with five counts including murder, attempted murder and unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition.
Biyela, who the State alleged was the shooter on October 30, 2018, was being cross-examined by State advocate Greg Wolmarans on Tuesday.
Wolmarans went into the finer details regarding how cellphone records tracked Biyela’s movements on the day Mihalik was killed.
Biyela, however, remained adamant that he is not a killer and they have the wrong man. Biyela chose to testify in his own defence in January and said he was a “gold trader” who came to Cape Town to do business.
Wolmarans told Biyela yesterday before ending his cross-examination, “I put it you, you are not a trader, you are a hit man from KwaZulu-Natal?”
Biyela responded, “That name to me is an insult because I know that I am not being purchased.”
Wolmarans then said he was the shooter the State had identified. Biyela insisted, “I have never killed a man.”
Wolmarans also put it to Biyela that his version was filled with fictional characters. Biyela replied, “According to my knowledge they are real.”
Wolmarans said thus far the State has shown the court video evidence, photographic evidence, and cellphone data to link Biyela to the alleged offences as a “cold blooded killer”, but Biyela persisted, “No, I am not the person in the video footage.”
Using the cellphone records, Wolmarans yesterday painted a picture for the court, to show how four men had allegedly orchestrated Mihalik’s killing. The fourth person however died.
Early testimony placed Biyela with Khumalo at the time Khumalo was arrested. Yesterday, Biyela said, “I was not there in the place where the traffic officer was in the road.”
When Wolmarans asked him if he just happened to call Khumalo in his hour of need when he was pulled over by the traffic officer, Biyela said, “I don’t know when he lost his vehicle.”
The trial continues today.