The KwaZulu-Natal High Court has heard that crucial witnesses in the reopened inquest into the 1967 death of Chief Albert Luthuli are untraceable.
Tuesday marked the second day of proceedings into the circumstances surrounding Luthuli’s death, which the apartheid government claimed was caused by a train accident in kwaDukuza. However, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) is challenging that narrative.
Hawks investigator Adolph Steyn, who is assisting with the inquiry, testified that attempts to locate key individuals linked to the original incident have failed.
One of those individuals is Peter van Wyk, believed to be the train conductor at the time. “I managed to trace a house in Durban that was linked to him, but only parts of it remained. A nearby security guard said no one had lived there for a year, and he didn’t know anyone by that name,” said Steyn.
Steyn also attempted to find Daniel Greyling, a firefighter reportedly present at the scene. Visiting the now-dilapidated St Andrews Hotel, where Greyling was once believed to reside, he found no trace. “The building is in poor condition. Workers there said no one by that name was known to them, and no records exist from before the year 2000,” he told the court.
The inquest continues as authorities try to piece together new evidence that could challenge the official version of Luthuli’s death.
