Tragic Twist: Senzo Meyiwa’s Childhood Friend Recounts Heart-Wrenching Tale of How Police Tortured Him So He Confesses To Murder
The late Bafana Bafana captain Senzo Meyiwa’s childhood friend Mthokozisi Thwala has told the North Gauteng High Court that he was tortured by police who wanted him to confess to killing the soccer star.
Thwala was one of the people who were in the house when Meyiwa was shot dead at his then-girlfriend Kelly Khumalo’s home in Vosloorus, Gauteng, on 26 October 2014. He is the second state witness in the trial of five men accused of involvement in Meyiwa’s murder.
Senzo Meyiwa’s Childhood Friend Shares Heartrending Torture Story In Court
According to Daily Sun, Thwala testified on Wednesday, 2 August 2023, that he was arrested and taken to a police station in Germiston, where he was beaten and suffocated by police officers.
“Two officers arrived while I was busy on my phone informing my family and Mandisa (Senzo’s wife) that I had arrived [at the police station]. One of them grabbed the phone out of my hands and asked who I was talking to. Then the other one asked me who killed Senzo. As I was about to answer, they started hitting me with their hands and kicking me. They then accused me of killing Senzo. They continued to assault me, saying I didn’t want to talk.”
Gruesome Experience
The police officers battered Thwala for an hour, repeatedly telling him he would confess why he killed Senzo Meyiwa.
“They took out a rope and mat, which they placed under me after they tied my hands. They tied my legs and hands together on my back and put the mat thing under my private parts. They then took out a tube and started to tube me. They closed my mouth and nose and tied it at the back of my head. I struggled to breathe. I thought I was going to die.”
The cops thrashed Thwala for about six hours so severely that he peed on himself, the High Court heard.
Thwala was released after spending two days in custody without being charged. He said he did not open a case against the police because he feared they would come after him again.
The trial continues.