Tensions were high at the Senzo Meyiwa murder trial this morning as prison warders faced off with with some of the accused in the Senzo Mayiwa trial, during a tea break. The clash started after a warder asked the accused to sit in an appropriate manner because they were in court. The accused then responded to the warder and told him they just needed to stretch.

Three of the accused, wearing white t-shirts, were seen roughly grabbing the male warder, who retaliated by throwing a punch at one of the accused before a female warder came in between and stopped the scuffle. The defence says accused number 3, Mthobisi Mncube, was hit on the shoulder by the guard. Judge Ratha Mokgoatlheng, who is presiding over the case, was called to restore order. He then called the prison guard who approached the accused and he explained that accused number 4, Mthokoziseni Maphisa, was sitting on top of the bench. He says he told them they could not sit like that, but three of them started howling 'sizokushaya' (we will hit you). "I told them not to sit on top of the bench like that but instead they became aggressive and told me my only job was to escort them to and from the court," said the guard. The accused claimed that they were not sitting on the bench at the time but they were stretching.

Mokgoatlheng said he would not accept any misbehaviour in court. "I was told there was a scuffle. The prison warder has his own brief about how the accused must sit. Can we behave? There is nothing wrong with the accused stretching. This don't need this thing of fighting like in our Parliament. Ubuntu! resolve issues by speaking," he said. The state has called the lead investigator Brigadier Bongani Gininda, a commander of the National Cold Case Unit to testify today. The trial continues.