Four of the 22 Boeremag treason trialists lost their bid on Friday in the Pretoria High Court to secure bail.
Acting Judge Peter Mabuse dismissed the bail applications of Mokopane medical doctor Johan Pretorius Jnr and Bela-Bela farmers Gerhardus ”Oom Vis” Visagie, Rudi Gouws and Herman van Rooyen.
He said his judgement was still being typed and would only be available later in the afternoon.
Baffled family members at first just stood and stared. Then Pretorius’s wife burst into tears on realising the implication of the ruling. Van Rooyen’s wife, Nelmarie, who earlier this year married him in a special ceremony at the court, hugged him.
The four, and Pretorius’ two brothers (also still in custody) were on the run from police for several months in 2002 before they were arrested.
The state alleges they were responsible for a spate of bombings in Soweto, Bronkhorstspruit and KwaZulu-Natal during that period. A woman died as a result of one of the explosions.
The prosecution earlier told the court there is evidence that the four also took part in the aborted Operation Popeye — a radical plan that would have served as a trigger to create chaos in the country and take over the government.
There is evidence that even after Popeye was called off and several Boeremag members arrested, the group had continued making explosives and setting off blasts.
After the Johannesburg bombings, the group was allegedly also involved in explosions at a Buddhist temple in Bronkhorstspruit, at Lanseria airport and on a bridge in KwaZulu-Natal.
The state described the Boeremag as a fanatical extremist organisation with no tolerance for people of other races and religions, and argued that the four applicants would continue with their campaign of terror if they were released on bail.
However, the defence argued that the state has not proved that they would flee or interfere with the state’s case. All of the accused have much to lose and have testified that they are determined to prove their innocence.
The court earlier heard evidence that Visagie, who at 65 is the oldest of the 22 treason trialists, is in a poor physical and mental condition and might very well never see the end of the trial if he is not released on bail. — Sapa