Panayiotou Trial: Defence attacks ex-employees testimony

A former employee of murder accused businessman Christopher Panayiotou took a pummelling when the defence attacked his testimony.

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Port Elizabeth – Murder-accused Christopher Panayiotou’s former employee told the Port Elizabeth High Court on Friday how the businessman took his personal cellphone and kept it in his possession for an entire night.

Mawonga Ndedwa was under cross-examination in the ongoing trial against Panayiotou and his two co-accused Sinethemba Nenembe and Zolani Sibeko. The defence on Friday continued to rip through Ndedwa’s testimony in an attempt to expose any potential discrepancies in his version.

The men are accused of kidnapping and killing Panayiotou’s wife Jayde in April 2015.

Ndedwa, was employed by the Panyaiotou’s since 2012 and was subsequently fired during February this year for stealing 11 bottles of whisky and other “disciplinary charges”.

Earlier this week he testified that two weeks prior to Jayde’s disappearance his boss ordered him to “destroy” his personal cellphone because police would be after him if he did not. Ndedwa alleges that Panayiotou used his cellphone to call the alleged middleman Luthando Siyoni.

Ndedwa told the court that Panayiotou would take his phone away and go sit in the OK Grocer office. He recalled a time Panayiotou even left the OK Grocer with his cellphone.

“At one stage I was looking for my phone and it was not present. I only found my phone the following day at Infinity,” said Ndedwa.

But Defence Advocate Terry Price questioned Ndedwa as to why he did not mention in his statement to police that Panayiotou kept his phone overnight.

“I did not think that he did not write it down. When he read it out I was under pressure, he read it out quickly,” said Ndedwa.

Price then went on to undermine Ndedwa’s credibility.

“You are opening a noose for yourself Mr Ndedwa. You told the court yesterday [Thursday] he [Kanna Swanepoel] read it out in English, which you understand very well, and that you were happy with the statement…You are confusing everybody and that’s what happens when you don’t tell the truth,” said Price.

Cell phone records show that 27 calls were made between Ndedwa and Siyoni’s cell phone numbers.

Ndedwa has denied ever calling Siyoni and testified earlier this week that Panayiotou used his cellphone “to organise Jayde’s death”.

Earlier this week Ndedwa denied having a conversation with Christopher Panayiotou’s mother, Fanoula. The transcript of the recorded conversation was played out to Ndedwa in court on Friday.

Price asked Ndedwa why he chose not to give the phone to Panayiotou’s mother, as he initially planned.

“I came to think about the things that Christopher had done for me…but then I changed my mind,” Ndedwa said.

The transcript shows that Ndedwa intended to return his phone to the Panayiotou family, he testified that he later “changed his mind” and went to the police with the phone because he was “scared”.

The defence claim that Ndedwa attempted to extort the Panayiotou family for R150 000 in exchange for the phone. Panayiotou’s lawyers claim that when Ndedwa realised the family weren’t budging he then only went to the police.

Panayiotou, Nenembe, and Sibeko are facings charges of conspiracy to commit murder, murder, kidnapping, and robbery with aggravating circumstances. Panayiotou is also facing an additional charge of defeating or obstructing the course of justice. They have all pleaded not guilty.

The trial continues on Monday.

African News Agency