- The Gauteng High Court has heard that Nateniël Julies was killed by a prohibited pump-action shotgun bullet fired at close range.
- Julies was struck by 189 pellets fired from the deadly shotgun bullet.
- A ballistic expert testified that the shooter was standing between nine and 11 metres from Julies.
A ballistics expert has told a court that Nateniël Julies, 16, sustained 189 pellet wounds when he was shot by a police shotgun in Eldorado Park last year.
Julies was shot with a shotgun loaded with birdshot, not rubber bullets, as is standard procedure in the SAPS, Lieutenant-Colonel Lucas Visser told the Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg sitting in Palm Ridge.
Julies, who lived with Down Syndrome, sustained fatal wounds.
Testifying on Tuesday, Visser said Julies was shot at close range and that the fatal "number 5" shotgun bullet was fired from a 12-gauge shotgun belonging to the Eldorado Park police station.
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There are roughly 280 pellets inside a single birdshot bullet.
On 28 August 2020, Visser said, he attended a post-mortem at Diepkloof government mortuary in Soweto, where pellets were removed from Julies' upper body, saying:
"When I looked at the body, it had wounds inflicted by shotgun pellets. When I looked at the wounds, they revealed where the shooter was from the deceased.
"Shotgun pellets spread in a circular direction when fired. I then tested the shotgun until I got the same spreading of the pellets. I then concluded that the fatal shot was fired by a person standing between nine to 11 metres away from the deceased. Had Julies survived, he would have been severely injured," Visser said.
#NathanielJulies Bridget Harris broke down in tears when a police expert testified that her son was struck by 189 pellets fired from a shotgun that ended the 16-year-old's life. Three Eldorado Park police officers are standing trial (@ntwaagae)
— Team News24 (@TeamNews24) October 20, 2021
Visser said he could not determine where the fatal bullet was manufactured.
"I only established that it was a number 5 shotgun bullet. I was later handed the murder weapon and two 9mm Parabellum ammunition found at the scene.
"One of the 9mm bullets was from Armatec gun shop in Pretoria and another was manufactured and distributed by Pretoria Metal Pressing for police use," said Visser.
Visser also testified to earlier claims made by Constable Caylene Whiteboy, who allegedly fired the gun, that she didn't know the shotgun was loaded with bullets.
Visser said whenever anyone was handed a shotgun, the person must first look in the chamber to see if there was a bullet inside the weapon.
Visser demonstrated to the court how to safely load and use a shotgun with rubber bullets.
He mentioned that rubber bullets were also fatal if fired at close range.
Visser testified that in 2014, SAPS management prohibited the use of AAA, SSG and SG shotgun ammunition because they were deadly.
Whiteboy and her colleague Sergeant Simon Scorpion Ndyalvane have pleaded not guilty to murder, illegal possession of ammunition, and defeating the ends of justice.
Ndyalvane also faced a charge of perjury.
Their colleague, Sergeant Foster Netshiongolo has pleaded not guilty to being an accessory after the fact to murder, defeating the ends of justice and illegal possession of ammunition.
The case continues on Thursday.
