AKA‘s murder trial heard a witness describe Tuesday how a farewell outside a Durban restaurant ended with the rapper on the ground and his friend Tebello “Tibz” Motsoane wounded nearby.

The club promoter told the Durban High Court he initially mistook the sound of the shooting for fireworks. The two men were killed outside Wish restaurant on Florida Road on February 10, 2023.

“I heard a loud bang, and I thought it was fireworks, and I remember just seeing sparks and sparks,” he testified, Eyewitness News reported.

The witness said he had collected AKA, born Kiernan Forbes, and his entourage from King Shaka International Airport before dinner. Motsoane and other friends joined them there.

As the group said goodbye outside, shots interrupted the evening. The promoter recalled seeing Motsoane crawl into a passage to get away from the scene. Forbes was bleeding on the ground, and the witness said the group began to realize he may have died.

He also told the court police had taken his cellphone for several days, possibly a week. He said they were checking it for evidence that could help the case, but he did not recall being told what they found. The promoter completed his testimony Tuesday.

The account followed several days of evidence about a gun prosecutors alleged was connected to the killings. Police witnesses described its recovery and handling as defense lawyers challenged how officers conducted the search and what they could actually see.

A witness who testified Monday identified defendant Siyanda Eddie Myeza as the man allegedly found with the weapon.

Prosecutors also alleged that the gun was linked to the 2022 killing of taxi boss Gift Khanyile. Through his lawyer, Simphiwe Mlotshwa, Myeza denied knowing about the gun or having control over it and suggested it had been planted. The officer maintained that he recovered it from Myeza.

Seven men pleaded not guilty when the trial opened earlier this month. The charges included conspiracy to commit murder, the murders of Forbes and Motsoane, attempted murder and firearm offenses.

The court separated six additional charges against Myeza, counts 12 through 17, from the main case. Those counts concerned a separate matter, while he remained one of the seven defendants in the AKA and Tibz prosecution.

Prosecutors expected to call 45 witnesses when the court finalized the trial schedule. The current block ran through November 6, with another session planned for April 2027.