One of two men arrested and released on free bail after the brutal attack on Thandiswa Qubuda in January might have deliberately misled the Grahamstown Magistrate's Court by claiming during their formal bail application that he had no pending cases against him.
One of two men arrested and released on free bail after the brutal attack on Thandiswa Qubuda in January might have deliberately misled the Grahamstown Magistrate's Court by claiming during their formal bail application that he had no pending cases against him.
The men were arrested shortly after an attack on Qubuda in E Street left her comatose. She died in hospital on 28 February, six weeks later.
Both men were released on warning during their bail application on 29 January.
In a shocking twist, Grocott's Mail this week learned that one of the men currently out on free bail was due to appear in court yesterday for a trespassing case.
The 20-year-old Victoria Road resident was due to appear with two other men on trespassing charges on the same day as his appearance in connection with the attack on Qubuda.
During the duo's bail application both men, through written affidavits, said there were no pending cases against them.
Investigating officer Warrant Officer John Manzana confirmed that neither had previous convictions, arrest warrants or pending cases against them.
Both indicated that they intended to plead not guilty. However, local police yesterday confirmed that one of the men faced a trespassing charge.
Police spokesman Lieutenant Luvuyo Mjekula said the man in question was arrested on trespassing charges together with two other people last year. "The incident allegedly happened in Taunton Street, in Grahamstown," he said.
Explaining the situation Mjekula said the investigating officer said it was possible this case may have been struck off the roll and then placed on it again.
This could have been why it had not appeared as a pending case. The pair were initially charged with rape and attempted murder, but the rape charges were withdrawn due to lack of evidence.
The men, aged 19 and 20, were released from custody on warning during their bail application on 29 January, despite the fact that Fingo Village residents had submitted a petition objecting to their release.
Grocott’s Mail reported that during their bail application, investigating officer John Manzana told the court he couldn’t oppose it because there was not enough evidence against the men.
State prosecutor Asanda Koliti said the state had provisionally withdrawn the rape charge because they had not received confirmation that the woman had indeed been raped.
Earlier this month Grahamstown police spokesperson, Captain Mali Govender said in a statement that an internal investigation would establish whether or not the police had acted in accordance with prescribed policies and procedures.
She noted that the case they were investigating was that of attempted murder, but said this had now been changed to murder.
The two men appeared briefly in court yesterday and Magistrate Dion Kotze said there were about 10 statements still outstanding before postponing the case for further investigation to 30 April.
Both men are still out on warning and their bail conditions still apply.
