Tears on the stand: Defence witness breaks down in Duncan Hoorn murder trial

A lengthy day of testimony in the Duncan Hoorn murder trial concluded with a Philippi SAPS detective tearing up on the witness stand. Sergeant Bongolethu Gwada, who has served with SAPS since 2010 and as a detective since 2011, was the defence's first witness in the Western Cape High Court on Monday. Hoorn is charged with kidnapping, murder, and obstructing justice.

Gwada testified that he accompanied Warrant Officer Basson to Hoorn's home on June 27, 2024, after seeing Basson speaking to a woman at Philippi police station. They arrived around 8:30 PM and stayed at the property for about nine minutes. Gwada claimed he did not see Chantel at the scene despite later conflicting testimony from her sister, who stated she saw Chantel on the balcony calling for help while police were present.

Cross-examination by State prosecutor Renée Uys questioned why Hoorn was not arrested following the issuance of an assault GBH docket the following day. The docket contained a statement implicating Hoorn and information that Chantel had been admitted to the hospital. Gwada explained that the information was hearsay and he sought a direct statement from Chantel, who he visited multiple times in the hospital but could not obtain due to her serious condition and medical tubes.

Uys challenged Gwada's explanation, asking how he could have failed to arrest Hoorn given the damning information and the hospitalized victim. Acting Judge Amanda van Leeve also criticized Gwada's reasoning, stating that a detained suspect with no statement was not grounds for dismissal of a case. Gwada's testimony became increasingly emotional during re-examination when Jose asked if he had been consulted about discrepancies between his statement and Chantel's sister's account.

Gwada tearfully admitted he had not been informed of the discrepancy and broke down in tears on the stand.

The defence subsequently decided not to call Hoorn's sister as a witness, though they remain seeking Basson, who has been subpoenaed but is currently untraceable and reportedly absent from work. The defence's judge warned that the trial, already lengthy, might close if Basson does not appear. The State indicated it would submit written head of argument by Thursday and argue for Hoorn's conviction.