The two Boeremag accused escaped under the police’s watch, not that of his department, Correctional Services Minister Ngconde Balfour said on Thursday.
”I want to make it clear that it was not my people who took [the Boeremag trialists] to court,” Balfour said.
Herman van Rooyen (33) and Rudi Gouws (28) went missing during the lunch hour recess of the treason trial at the Pretoria High Court on Wednesday.
Balfour said he did not have all the details of the escape, but pleaded to judges not to ask officials to remove the handcuffs of prisoners.
”If it was us or if it was the police … we know the risk profile of the people we take care of. Some are highly dangerous,” Balfour said.
He said correctional service officials often got into trouble if they did not want to remove cuffs from people who were in some cases ”highly, highly dangerous”.
He said Wednesday’s escape was detrimental to the case and was in no one’s interest.
”I hope the police get those two guys back. They must face the music like anyone else,” he said.
Van Rooyen was caught in Pretoria in December 2002 in a bakkie allegedly rigged with 384kg of explosives and two bags of nuts and bolts for shrapnel.
At the time it was speculated that the car bomb was meant for a soccer game between Kaizer Chiefs and Sundowns at Loftus Versfeld.
Van Rooyen was believed to have access to a R40-million inheritance and to be bankrolling the Boeremag’s activities.
The evening before Van Rooyen’s arrest, Gouws was caught when he was lured into a police trap in Pretoria.
Their trial began in late 2003. Along with them were 20 other men, also charged with plotting a right-wing coup d’etat. They face 42 charges including murder, attempted murder, treason, terrorism, sabotage and arms and explosives offences.
The trial was postponed several times due to problems with legal aid board payments, lawyers and matters such as the accused complaining of loud music in prison. – Sapa