The man accused of gathering the information needed to carry out the hit on Anti-Gang Unit (AGU) detective, Lieutenant-Colonel Charl Kinnear, says he was nothing but a pawn used by alleged underworld kingpin, Nafiz Modack.
Zane Kilian shocked the Western Cape High Court on Monday when he dropped several bombshells about the death of Kinnear, as his legal team brought a new bail application ahead of his trial next year.
While Kilian has already lost a bail application at the Bellville Magistrate’s Court and a subsequent appeal at the High Court, he appeared confident as he walked into court sporting a short grey beard and carrying two thick lever-arch files.
Kilian along with Modack and a large group of bandiete are facing a moerse list of charges including murder, attempted murder and racketeering relating to Kinnear’s death.
The former rugby player and father from Springs boldly took to the stand and handed over one of his files to Judge Mark Sher.
Addressing the court, Kilian explained he was introduced to Modack by another debt collector between January and February 2020.
He said Modack asked him to assist with debt collections and to ping the numbers of various individuals using a platform run by State witness, Bradley Goldblatt.
He said Modack claimed that Kinnear was a corrupt cop working with alleged Sexy Boys gang boss, Jerome “Donkie” Booysen.
He was given various cellphone numbers and asked to ping them as these individuals allegedly wanted to kill Modack.
He was also shown footage of doors being kicked down at Modack’s home and his dog being shot.
Kilian said in his affidavit: “On one occasion that I pinged Kinnear and Booysen’s cellphone numbers, on Accused 1’s instructions, the result reflected that they were in the same vicinity/location in Johannesburg”.
He explained that pings do not give a precise location but an approximation, which could also mean that Donkie was perhaps being surveilled by Kinnear.
He also said that he had tracking reports to show that Kinnear’s number was pinged by several other users on the platform, yet only he was arrested.
WhatsApp conversations purportedly between Kilian and Modack provided to the judge, showed that despite requesting pings, Modack already knew on one occasion that Kinnear was home alone.
This, Killian claimed, is an indication that Kinnear was being followed in person.
Kilian said he got bang when he realised Donkie’s phone started pinging in Brakpan near his son’s school, and he found that Kinnear’s phone was pinging in Springs near his daughter’s school.
In an exclusive interview with the Daily Voice three years ago, Booysen alleged that he became aware of Kilian tracking his phone and went to Johannesburg to confront him, but was later advised to “lay low”.
Kilian said after he was arrested by the Hawks and brought to Cape Town, he was put in contact with his former lawyer Eric Bryer, allegedly through Modack.
He said Bryer warned him not to implicate Modack and instead to blame a “Mr Mohammed”.
Fearing for his life, he said he lied to cops, but later came clean and named Modack.
He insisted that he never referred to Modack as the notorious “Mr X”, claiming that “Mr Mohammed” does in fact exist.
He claimed that Bryer told him not to say anything to the Hawks or he would have to “pick coffins for himself and his family”.
Kilian said he and his father, who is a retired police officer, investigated Kinnear’s murder and had obtained evidence that he would present at trial.
Kilian also added that while the State is ready to take the matter to trial, police have never arrested the shooter.