”Substantially high alcohol levels” were found in the blood of Pretoria High Court Judge Nkola Motata, who appeared on a drunken-driving charge in the Johannesburg Magistrate’s Court on Friday.
Magistrate Desmond Nair ruled that the case against Motata be postponed to May 18 for further investigation.
The judge was arrested on January 5 after crashing his car into a wall in Hurlingham. He allegedly resisted arrest and was put in a police car at the scene by five metro police officers.
Metro police said at the time that two women officers on the scene had called for assistance after the driver became ”uncooperative”. Motata was released on bail of R1 000 from the Parkview police station.
During Friday’s court proceedings, state prosecutor Annamarie Morton said she had just received forensic results showing ”substantially high alcohol levels found in Motata’s blood” after the accident.
Morton, who wanted the case to be postponed, said the directorate of public prosecutions was launching an investigation into the matter. ”I have received a call from the directorate saying they will investigate the matter,” she said.
Motata — who was seen smoking a cigarette outside during a court break — was represented by advocates Yusuf Dockrat and Tebogo Mathibedi.
Addressing the court earlier on Friday, Dockrat said the case should be struck off the roll because ”the state’s failure to have all the relevant witness statements had caused strain on Motata”.
”The case has received a lot of public attention that was taking a toll on Motata,” said Dockrat. ”His reputation is being tarnished on a daily basis.”
In response to this, Morton said that the late arrival of the forensic results had been due to a backlog at a Pretoria laboratory. She added that the state would consult with all relevant witnesses.
Following consultation with Transvaal Judge President Bernard Ngoepe, Motata took leave of absence from the beginning of February.
His bail was extended to his next court appearance.
At his previous court date on February 27, Motata appeared in the magistrate’s chambers instead of in open court in connection with the case. — Sapa