Varsity
70 celebrating
years
The official student newspaper of the university of cape town
24 July 2012
Volume 71: Edition 7
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Giddy murder left unsolved Mu’Attham Carlie
I
t has been two years since the tragic death of UCT student Dominic Giddy in February 2010; all three men accused of the murder of Giddy were acquitted last week. In a statement sent to all students, UCT expressed outrage that the Giddy case has not been solved. What is more discouraging is the fact that cases similar to Giddy’s have also not been solved. “Giddy’s death was preceded by the fatal shooting of first-year medical student Benny Pakiso Moqobane, 19, five months earlier, and the deaths of two professors, Mike Larkin and Kevin Rochford, who were murdered in 2007 and 2008 respectively. All these crimes took place off campus. UCT is outraged that these crimes, like the one involving Giddy, have still not been solved,” said UCT. Giddy was walking to his Observatory home when he was confronted by three men and stabbed. One of the men accused of the murder, Bongani Matano, was acquitted earlier this month. Zukisani Songwaku and Simphiwe Ngoma were also acquitted as well. Matano was acquitted on the grounds of insufficient evidence brought against him. Legal counsel representing Songwaku and Ngoma argued that the mere possession of Giddy’s cellphone and sim-card was not enough to convict them of murdering the deceased Social Sciences student. Andre Pienaar, representing Songwaku, argued that, despite being in possession of Giddy’s phone, all the possibilities of what could have happened had not been
ACCQUITTED – Staff and students protest the rise of violent crime and Giddy’s murder near the university campus in 2010. Inset: Dominic Giddy Images: Morgan Morris, Monday Paper ruled out. Thus, he argued, the mere possession of his phone was not enough to find the accused guilty of murder as Giddy’s phone could have been picked up by anyone, anywhere. For Ngoma, attorney Likhaya Makana argued that the state did not prove beyond reasonable doubt that Ngoma had murdered Giddy. “The State called various witnesses. It is a fact that there is no direct evidence linking Ngoma to the charges,” Makana said. Additionally, Ngoma had an alibi. His girlfriend was called to the stand
and testified that he was with her the night Giddy was murdered.
cases similar to Giddy’s have also not been solved. However, prosecutor Nopelo Nhantsi challenged Ngoma’s alibi, arguing that Ngoma’s cell phone records showed he had called his girlfriend on the night of the murder.
This proved that they had not, in fact, been together, said Nhantsi. Crucially, however, enough evidence was not provided to rule out all possibilities, countered Makana. He argued that Ngoma’s cell phone records showed that the call was made in Langa, where he lived. “There are various possibilities in this matter. Nine people lived in [Ngoma’s] house. [Ngoma] said his cell phone was not with him all the time. It was charging,” he said. Thus, the accused were acquitted despite prosecutor Nhantsi’s
argument that the men should be convicted because, just 15 minutes after the murder, both men called their girlfriends and Giddy’s sim card was active in Ngoma’s phone. UCT’s statement emphasised the university’s efforts in the fight against crime by stating the measures the university has taken to ensure student and community safety, including participating in the Groote Schuur Community Improvement District (GSCID) project.
Varsity, the official student newspaper since 1942, is committed to the principles of equality and democracy.