NEWS & ANALYSIS

State closes its case in Coligny murder trial

Paramedic Itumeleng Ledikwa says he found Matlhomola Moshoeu bleeding from nose and mouth, with skull fracture

The State has closed its case in the trial of two Coligny men who allegedly killed a teenage boy on April 20, 2017.

On Wednesday morning, the State called its last witness, Itumeleng Ledikwa, who is an advanced life support paramedic.

Testifying in the North West High Court in Mahikeng, Ledikwa said that, on the day of the incident, they had received a call from the police saying a child had fallen from a moving vehicle.

He said, when they arrived on the scene, they found 16-year-old Matlhomola Moshoeu bleeding from his nose and mouth.

Ledikwa said, when they examined him, he noticed that the teen had a fractured skull.

"It is difficult to stop the bleeding with a patient who has a basal skull fracture. The patient was bleeding profusely. We decided to transport him to the nearest facility. We took him to the facility which is two minutes away from the scene," he told the court.

Ledikwa was testifying in the murder trial of Pieter Doorewaard, 27, and Philip Schutte, 34, who have pleaded not guilty to charges of Moshoeu's murder, intimidation, kidnapping, theft, the unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition, and pointing a firearm.

Advocate Hennie du Plessis, for Doorwaard, asked why paramedics did not support Moshoeu with a neck brace when they treated him on the scene.

But Ledikwa said, since the patient was on the spine board, and his head fitted in head blocks, it was not necessary to use a neck brace.

The matter was postponed to Thursday at 14:00 when the court will hear the defence's application for a discharge.

Doorewaard and Schutte are accused of killing Moshoeu in Coligny last year. The pair claim they caught the teenager stealing a sunflower on April 20, 2017.

The men said they had intended to drive him to the local police station, but that he had jumped off their bakkie along the way and broken his neck.

Moshoeu's death sparked protests in the area, with some residents saying he was killed because he was black. Several houses and businesses were burnt to the ground.

Doorewaard and Schutte are out on R5 000 bail each.

News24