PORNOGRAPHER CLEARED SA Hustler publisher Joe Theron on Monday had all charges against himself and two employees withdrawn by Southwark Crown Court when the prosecution failed to produce any evidence. Theron stood accused of importing obscene material into the UK in violation of the country’s Obscene Publications Act of 1959 and the Customs Consolidation Act of 1876. Theron has travelled to London eight times for the trial since his arrest in February last year, and had the first round of charges against him withdrawn and reformulated. Theron has maintained the charges were instigated by a business rival.
PAGAD ACCUSED DENIED BAIL EBRAHIM SATARDIEN, the man accused of shooting dead People Against Gangsterism and Drugs national secretary Sharief Khan, was on Monday ordered held in custody because his family fears for his life. A bail application which was to have been heard by the Wynberg Magistrate’s Court was psotponed to August 5. Prosecutor Faiek Davids said: “The state is unable to guarantee the safety of the accused.”
UN GIVES $3,5m THE United Nations announced an agreement with the Department of Trade and Industry to give $3,5m to small business development in South Africa.
HIPPO TRANSFER RESIDENTS of a village bordering the Vaal Dam are raising money to hire an expert to transfer a hippo that has taken up residence in the dam to a safer abode. When the hippo was discovered a week ago, local officials threatened to have her shot before she became a danger to the community. The threat enraged residents, who have been trying to find more “humane” ways to deal with the problem. African hippos kill more human beings each year than lions or crocodiles.
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