A Vanderbijlpark engineering company director has turned state witness in the case of two men accused of possessing uranium-enrichment equipment in the Vanderbijlpark Regional Court on Thursday, South African Broadcasting Corporation radio news reported.
Johan Meyer, whose charges under the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons and nuclear energy acts were withdrawn earlier this month, has agreed to be a state witness.
Gerhard Wisser and colleague Daniel Geiges were arrested earlier this month and face four charges under the two acts.
The state opposed the two men’s bail applications on Thursday.
Their arrests came shortly after charges against Meyer were withdrawn and after the removal of 11 containers of machinery and components to South Africa’s nuclear-research facility near Pelindaba.
The arrests formed part of an international investigation into a nuclear-component trafficking network and have been linked to the abandonment of Libya’s nuclear weapons programme. — Sapa