The Free State High Court has postponed the pre-trial hearing of convicted rapist and murderer Thabo Bester, his girlfriend Dr Nandipha Magudumana, and eight other suspects, to 10 February 2025.
All the accused legal representatives informed the court that they’re ready for pre-trial, except Bester’s representative, Advocate Lerato Moela.
Bester is accused of escaping from lawful custody, while his co-accused are accused of assisting him to escape from the Mangaung Correctional Centre.
“The matter is now postponed until 10th February 2025. Accused numbers one, seven and eight, you’re in custody. The rest, your bail is extended, you’re warned to appear again in this court at 9 am in the morning. Mr Moela, your client will remain, so we hear your arguments with regards to the further prosecution of your matter,” said Judge John Musi.
Meanwhile, the judge also refused to make a ruling on Moela’s application regarding the relaxation of his incarceration conditions at the Kgosi Mampuru Prison in Pretoria.
This includes ample time to consult with his legal counsel, to be provided with a laptop, tablet or suitable gadget to prepare for his case, not to be kept in a solitary confinement for 23 hours, to be kept in a normal cell, not to be hand and leg cuffed amongst others. Musi however refused to accede to Moela’s application.
“I am not going to make a ruling in this matter based on a half-baked application at this stage. That is how simple it is, the case is not ripe for me to make a ruling,” said the Judge.
