The court case involving former spy boss Billy Masetlha and two co-accused was postponed in the Pretoria commercial crimes court on Friday.
Masetlha’s co-accused, Muziwendoda Kunene, a software salesperson, and Funokwakhe Madladla, the former National Intelligence Agency manager for electronic surveillance, have already been charged with fraud.
Masetlha was added as an accused in December last year.
Masetlha’s attorney Imraan Haffejee asked that his bail conditions be amended so that he could travel to KwaZulu-Natal to visit his parents-in-law without asking the investigating officer’s permission.
Masetlha also asked to be allowed to communicate with African National Congress (ANC) secretary general Kgalema Motlanthe, who is a witness in the case.
”Motlanthe and Masetlha have political duties in common and they serve together in various committees so I ask that the two be allowed to communicate without the accused discussing the merits of the case,” Haffejee said.
Masetlha’s bail conditions forbid him from communicating with any witness in the case, applying for a new passport, changing his address or travelling out of Gauteng and North-West provinces without the approval of the investigating officer.
The requested amendments were granted, but Masetlha must inform the investigating officer before travelling to Kwazulu-Natal.
The case relates to hoax e-mails implicating senior ANC members in a conspiracy against the ANC’s deputy president Jacob Zuma, and Motlanthe.
President Thabo Mbeki fired Masetlha from his position in March last year after details of the hoax e-mail saga became public.
Kunene was contracted by the NIA to intercept e-mails and electronic communication. The case was postponed until April 5 for trial with subsequent dates of June 4 and 5 for the continuation of the trial. – Sapa