By Simon Nare
Police forensic expert Lieutenant-General Chris Mangena has detailed to the Nkabinde Inquiry how the Cato Manor Organised Crime Unit allegedly hunted down taxi operators, killed them in cold blood and then claimed self-defence.
Mangena told the inquiry probing the fitness of South Gauteng Director of Public Prosecutions Advocate Andrew Chauke to hold office that, in most crime scenes he analysed, the version of events given by unit members did not tally with the forensic evidence.
Testifying before the inquiry chaired by retired Constitutional Court Justice Elizabeth Nkabinde, Mangena said the reconstructed crime scenes showed that the deceased posed no danger when they were shot, and that firearms were planted to create the impression that officers had acted under threat.
He cited instances where gunshot wounds were inconsistent with the members’ claims of a shootout.
Mangena referred to one victim who was allegedly fetched from an ANC rally in Ezikhaweni in 2012 in what he described as a case of mistaken identity. The man was taken to his residence and shot dead.
“They took him from the rally and brought him home. At his residence they claimed he tried to grab a police officer’s firearm,” Mangena said.
He testified that this was one of many crime scenes he reconstructed to obtain forensic evidence relating to the Cato Manor killings.
Mangena, who has previously testified in high-profile trials including those of Oscar Pistorius and Senzo Meyiwa, said he initially hesitated to take on the investigations out of fear for his safety.
He told the inquiry that when he began the investigations in 2012, he and his team were escorted by crime intelligence officers because their lives were under threat.
He said even some police officers in the province were too afraid to speak about the unit and would walk away when questioned.
Mangena said he was also fearful about testifying before the inquiry.
“Chair, when I was contacted to come and testify, I said I can come, but my safety comes first because I need to be safe. Even after the testimony, I need to be safe.
“Because when we were conducting the examinations in 2012, we were mostly escorted by crime intelligence. They were always with us, monitoring our movements to protect us,” he said.
The forensic expert said hundreds of firearms were seized from crime scenes, which the unit claimed belonged to the taxi operators who were killed.
Mangena’s evidence comes after former KwaZulu-Natal Director of Public Prosecutions Advocate Moipone Noko and former North West Director of Public Prosecutions Advocate Sello Maema testified that there was sufficient evidence to charge unit members for the systematic killings of taxi operators linked to the Maphumulo association.
Both Noko and Maema alleged that unit members were paid by a rival association in Stanger to carry out the killings.
They further testified that, despite what they described as overwhelming evidence, former National Director of Public Prosecutions Advocate Shamila Batohi withdrew the criminal charges against the unit members.
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