A Namibian man accused of murdering two cops patrolling in Hout Bay has allegedly confessed to the crime, a court heard.
|||Cape Town - A Namibian man accused of murdering two police officers patrolling in Mandela Park in Hout Bay has allegedly confessed to the crime, the Western Cape High Court has heard.
Fabianus Fillipus is alleged to have shot and killed 26-year-old Constable Phindiwe Nikani and 27-year-old Mandisi Nduku on October 12 last year.
But Fillipus’s lawyer, Rael Kassel, said his client would dispute the contents of the alleged confession saying that his signature was forged.
Western Cape Judge President John Hlophe, who was presiding over the pre-trial hearing on Friday, asked whether the alleged confession was video recorded. Prosecutor Tembeka Mulenga told Judge Hlophe that it had not been.
Judge Hlophe instructed Mulenga to take the matter up with the investigating officer.
Mulenga said a trial date had been set and that the trial was expected to run for five weeks.
She said 29 witnesses had been lined up to prove the State’s case, but added that the trial might take longer because Kassel was expected not to make formal admissions about the case. This would mean that the State had to provide evidence on each aspect of its case.
It is alleged the officers confronted Fillipus a short while before the double murder around 11pm that night.
“The accused (Fillipus) was the driver of a BMW which was standing in the road. Police instructed the accused to move the vehicle to allow them to pass. After the BMW vehicle had been moved and parked, the police approached him.” Fillipus ran away. “The police initially gave chase but without success, then continued their patrol duties. The evidence indicates that the accused thereafter returned and shot the police,” the State alleges in the indictment.
The uniformed officers were seated inside the patrol vehicle when they were shot. Judge Hlophe remanded Fillipus to August 12 when the trial was set to start.
jade.otto@inl.co.za
Cape Argus