The case against self-proclaimed North West political fixer Brown Mogotsi has been postponed to 3 August to allow him to consult with his legal representative.
Mogotsi appeared in the Johannesburg Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday. He faces charges linked to allegations that he staged his own assassination attempt in Vosloorus in November.
His lawyer, Makau Sekgatja, told the court that the Department of Correctional Services had made it difficult for him to properly consult with Mogotsi while he remains in custody.
Sekgatja asked the court to consider an order allowing legal representatives to enter correctional facilities with laptops and mobile phones, saying access to electronic devices was necessary to prepare the case.
“If the courts open it, is there a possibility that this court can make an order that Correctional Services allow us to enter those particular facilities using our laptops as well as our cellphones so that we can be in a position to properly consult and prepare for this particular matter?” Sekgatja said.
The court ruled that Mogotsi and his legal team may consult at court, where they will be able to use their electronic devices.
Mogotsi remains behind bars after being denied bail twice. The court previously found that he was a flight risk after he provided inconsistent and unverifiable residential addresses.
Police found that the properties he submitted as his residential addresses did not belong to him and were occupied by other people.
Mogotsi later brought a second bail application, claiming there were new facts relating to his residential address. However, the magistrate ruled that the information amounted to merely “reshuffled evidence” that had already been considered and rejected during the first bail application.
