The police have arrested a third person in connection with the January murder of a Hlalani woman. Two men aged 19 and 20 were arrested shortly after Thandiswa Qubuda's death following a brutal attack.
The police have arrested a third person in connection with the January murder of a Hlalani woman. Two men aged 19 and 20 were arrested shortly after Thandiswa Qubuda's death following a brutal attack.
The men, who worked as car guards, were released on 29 January on free bail. The attack, in E Street, left Qubuda comatose.
She died in hospital on 28 February, six weeks later.
During the duo's scheduled court appearance on Tuesday this week magistrate Dion Kotze said a third suspect, who was recently arrested, needed to apply for bail.
The two men needed to be present during the 16-year-old's bail application.
The newly arrested suspect was due to appear for bail in another court, while the two men were appearing in a separate court room.
Asked by Kotze whether the state intended to pursue the rape charges, state prosecutor Asanda Koliti said an attempted rape charge was a possibility.
Kotze also confirmed that the attempted murder charge had been changed to murder.
The case was transferred to the court where the recently arrested suspect was due to appear for bail. The case has been riddled with controversy.
Last month Grocott's Mail reported that one of two men arrested and released on free bail after the brutal attack on Qubuda might have deliberately misled the Grahamstown Magistrate's Court by claiming during their formal bail application that he had no pending cases against him.
In a shocking twist last month, Grocott's Mail learned that one of the men currently out on free bail was due to appear in court on 25 March 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 their bail application both men, in written affidavits, had said there were no pending cases against them.
Investigating officer Warrant Officer John Manzana confirmed during their bail application that neither had previous convictions, warrants of arrest or pending cases against them. Both indicated they intended to plead not guilty.
However, local police 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 last year, along with two other people.
"The incident allegedly happened in Taunton Stree, 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 case attracted local and national interest, with organisations and individuals expressing horror at the brutality of the attack over social networks.
