South African National Defence Force (SANDF) soldier Mbubanzi Desmond Zwakala in the witness box at the Northern Cape High Court.
Image: Sandi Kwon Hoo
SOUTH African National Defence Force (SANDF) soldier Mbubanzi Desmond Zwakala, who stands accused of the murder of Amogelang Assegaai, claimed that he fired a warning shot into the air after the Grade 12 Kimberley Boys’ High pupil “throttled, pushed and swore” at him outside his home in Impala Road.
Zwakala and his co-accused, David Khangumbe, are standing trial on charges of murder and obstructing the course of justice.
Testifying in the Northern Cape High Court recently, Zwakala denied threatening the deceased with a firearm.
He stated that his son, Kamva Zwakala, was injured during an altercation at a matric valedictory party at Assegaai’s house on October 21, 2022, where he also lost his cellphone.
Zwakala confronted Assegaai at his home on October 23, 2022, when he discovered that the SIM and memory cards were missing.
“Kamva needed to retrieve his contacts and schoolwork. Assegaai rudely said to me, ‘toppie is k*k gewoond’ (you are taking me for a ride). He never acted like a child when he throttled and cursed me.”
He added that he managed to push Assegaai away after being shoved against a wall.
“Assegaai went to stand next to Kamva. I fired a warning shot so that he would stop throttling me and move out of the way so that I could leave. I didn’t know what Assegaai was thinking. I had to pass him when I left, after he attacked me.”
He indicated that the safety latch had to be released before the bullet was fired and that he took his 9mm pistol with him that night to protect himself.
“I am not familiar with that area. There was a bullet in the chamber, as anything could happen. I never went there to fight. I only went to look for the cellphone.”
Zwakala said that although he had not heard any barking, he was concerned that Assegaai’s dog might attack him.
“It was windy, dark and raining, and the gunpowder must have hit the deceased while he was running towards the gate.”
He explained that his son was unable to intervene or call for help as he was still in pain and unable to move his neck.
“He was speaking softly as his teeth were broken. Assegaai ran through the big gate, and I later got into my car and drove off. I did not know that he had passed away.”
He denied threatening a neighbour, where he had apparently warned her that he would “make Kimberley small for them as he knew a lot of people.”
Zwakala explained that he instead thanked her for stopping the fight that erupted at the party on October 21, 2022.
David Khangumbe and Mbubanzi Desmond Zwakala are standing trial for the murder of Grade 12 pupil Amogelang Assegaai.
Image: Sandi Kwon Hoo
He added that he had known Khangumbe, known as “Shimmy”, for over six years as a friend who assisted him when he was unable to drive.
“I don’t pay him; we help each other. I know him as he transports schoolchildren. I phoned him on October 22, 2022, at 4.43am as I wanted him to drive with me to Bloemfontein. Upon my return, I checked on my son, who had stitches on his head, a swollen eye, and back pain. He said that he fell when they were kicking him. He was hit over the head with a beer bottle and noticed someone was holding an okapi knife.”
Zwakala suddenly collapsed into his seat in the witness box due to knee pain.
He explained that he did not immediately open an assault case for his son as he first wished to speak with Assegaai’s parents.
State advocate Sue-Anne Weyers-Gericke pointed out that it would have been impossible for the deceased to sustain a sideways entry wound in his left shoulder if the accused had indeed fired a shot into the air.
“The post-mortem indicated that the bullet travelled down the deceased’s rib. His skin was directly exposed to the barrel of the gun. The accused grabbed the deceased by the shirt, exposing his shoulder, before firing the shot between 20 to 30 centimetres from the target. The deceased’s mother told the court that she immediately went outside upon hearing the shot and found her son lying on the ground.”
She questioned why Zwakala would endanger his own child by firing a shot into the air while Kamva was standing next to Assegaai.
“An eyewitness - Nkosinathi Mhlaba - who was seated in the motor vehicle at the time of the shooting, never witnessed any altercation between the accused and the deceased.
“He testified that he was inside the car with Kamva checking his cellphone when he saw Assegaai grabbing his shoulder and falling to the ground, after he heard a shot being fired.”
Weyers-Gericke pointed out that Assegaai weighed 65 kilograms, while the accused overpowered him in size, stature and strength.
“The deceased was a schoolchild without a weapon.”
She stated that the accused was not under any risk or imminent attack.
“The deceased posed no threat, nor did he throttle the accused. He treated the accused with respect and went to the trouble of retrieving the cellphone while he was writing his final exams.”
Weyers-Gericke pointed out that a dog would likely have run out of the property, as the gate to the house was “wide open”.
“Kamva was at the house of the deceased and would have known if there was a dog inside. The accused fired a shot to reprimand the deceased.”
The case was postponed by Acting Judge Dries van Tonder until July 1.