Senzo Meyiwa murder trial: Accused says he was moved into C-Max to allow warders to move another inmate out

JOHANNESBURG - An accused in the Senzo Meyiwa trial told the Pretoria High Court that he had been moved to the C-Max section at the Kgosi Mampuru prison as a decoy inmate, while prison bosses moved another prisoner irregularly.

Fisokuhle Ntuli addressed the court on Wednesday on his alleged torture overnight, which resulted in his refusing to be brought to court.

He claimed that officials lied about finding a cellphone on him during a raid earlier in July,  and then moved him to C-Max, denied him phone calls to his family and his lawyer, and took blankets and sheets away from him.

Ntuli claimed that his move from the B-Max section to the C-Max section was engineered by dodgy prison warders who wanted to move another inmate by the name of David Ramahale out of the section.

"They moved him from C-Max before his time, and then they replaced him with me. It's not true that I was found with a cellphone."

But the Department of Correctional Services' Singabakho Nxumalo dismissed Ntuli’s claims.

"We can confirm as a department that Fisokuhle Ntuli was found with a mobile phone, an item that was strictly prohibited within our facilities. He was questioned and he admitted to ownership and the usage of that particular gadget."

On Wednesday, Judge Ratha Mokgoatlheng gave Ntuli the option to choose which prison he wants to be remanded in for the sake of progress.

Ntuli then opted to be moved to the Leeuwkop Prison.