The bail application of crime intelligence boss Richard Mdluli and his alleged accomplices was postponed until Monday in the Boksburg Magistrates Court.
Magistrate Emmanuel Magomba expressed dissatisfaction at the delays and time wasted in wrapping up the hearing.
This was after the state asked a few questions during the cross-examination of Mdluli and then said it needed more time to go through the document he had submitted to the court, which he claims is evidence of a campaign to discredit him.
See: Dirt flies in Mdluli case
Mdluli’s attorney Ike Motloung asked that certain parts of the top secret “DiNtlemeza” report be retracted as it did not deal with the case.
State prosecutor Kholeka Gcaleka argued that when a report is submitted, it must be viewed in totality.
“Certain paragraphs cannot be retracted. Each paragraph is a continuation,” she said.
But the court made a provisional finding that those retracted sections not be made public.
The report by Mdluli contained information on “victimisation and abuse of state resources”, “alleged misconduct by SAPS members”, and operations that had been conducted.
A cutting of an article in the Sowetan newspaper from July 10 2009 was also contained in the document.
Love triangle
Mdluli said the newspaper had linked him to the Oupa Ramogibe murder around the time of his appointment and that there was a campaign to tarnish his image.
“I was never involved in this love triangle,” said Mdluli.
State prosecutor Kholeka Gcaleka did not give reasons why bail should be opposed.
She said Mdluli only gave a piece of the puzzle with parts of the documents.
She submitted that the document was not in the interests of justice because the retracted elements of the dossier formed part of the case.
Paul Leisher, the attorney for Colonel Nkosana Sebastian Ximba, said he had never seen such a travesty of justice in his life.
“The state knew about this report beforehand and should have prepared.
“It’s negligent, and the defence has been kept in the dark about everything … who is going to testify for them, the reasons for opposing bail etc, etc, etc. All we know is that the state is opposing bail.”
Mdluli’s attorney, Ike Motloung said this was a disingenuous way for the state to get around the court.
“We want to know why bail is being opposed…the state has not presented anything to us.”
Conspiracy
On Thursday, Mdluli had blamed former acting police commissioner Tim Williams and late former Mpumalanga police commissioner Afrika Khumalo as being behind a campaign to discredit him prior to his appointment.
He said some people were using the media against him so he would not be promoted as the divisional commander of Crime Intelligence.
Mdluli had said he was in possession of a classified report that he would make available to the court.
“I declassified it … let it be in the eyes of the country.”
Khumalo had allegedly appointed two members of the murder and robbery unit in Germiston to find “anything on him” prior to his appointment.
He learned about it from the report. He said Khumalo and Williams had heard he was the front runner for the post and were allegedly using the media to discredit him.
Murder charges
Mdluli and three others — 52-year-old Lieutenant Colonel Mtunzi Mtunzi, court orderly Samuel Dlomo, 49, and Colonel Nkosana Sebastian Ximba, 38 — are accused of killing Ramogibe in 1999.
They are charged with intimidation, three counts of kidnapping, two counts of assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm, murder, attempted murder, and conspiracy to commit murder.
He said this was not the first time he had been linked to the killing of Ramogibe.
In 2009 two newspapers had claimed he was linked to the killing.
Mdluli said he was appointed by Cabinet and was a lieutenant general, one rank below national police Commissioner Bheki Cele.
He said he had nothing to do with the murder investigation of Ramogibe.
He asked that he be released on bail saying he trusted in the judiciary and would not leave the country.
He intends pleading not guilty to all the charges against him.
“If I’m given bail, I will still be under suspension, there’s nothing I can do to the witnesses, I don’t even know who the witnesses are.”
He said he was not “an animal” and would not use his police contacts to interfere with them.
The Krejcir link
Mdluli said he was taking the Radovan Krejcir investigation seriously because he was being implicated.
Krejcir was released on bail of R500 000 by the Johannesburg Magistrate’s Court on Friday. He faces a charge of fraud relating to a R4.5 million claim to an insurance company for cancer.
At the time of his arrest the police minister had communicated to him that National Directorate of Public Prosecutions was investigating him in the matter.
NPA spokesperson advocate Mthunzi Mhanga has previously denied that to the media and on Friday he said they would deny the allegation again in court. — Sapa