Durban — The docket in the case against eight people charged with copper cable theft estimated at R3 million will be sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) for guidance.
The cables belonged to Telkom, eThekwini and Transnet.
This emerged on Monday in the Pinetown Magistrate’s Court where one of the accused walked into the dock carrying her baby.
The woman is among four Malawians who were denied bail in the matter. The other four accused – Craig Chetty, Dinesh Harilall, Thembinkosi Mnyandu and Sibusiso Ngeneko – are out on bail of R4 000 each.
Husband and wife Amadu Juma and Liya Nyirongo, as well as Abdula Juma and his wife, Lesungu Mtola, remain behind bars for now. Their counsel is appealing their bail refusal.
The four also face charges of being in contravention of the Immigration Act with the State having verified with Home Affairs that they were in the country illegally.
The first time the eight appeared in court, Nyirongo had her baby (two months old) strapped to her chest; the next, she had the baby on her back and then held it in her arms. During proceedings the court orderly took the baby out of the court when it began crying.
On a past occasion, Nyirongo walked with the baby’s blanket tied around her body while Mtola carried the baby. When they stepped into the dock the court orderly took the baby and held it until the brief appearance was over. On Monday, the mother walked in carrying her baby and proceedings continued with the infant in her arms.
State prosecutor Nomcebo Xulu asked that the matter be adjourned for further investigations as well as guidance on investigations from the DPP.
The case was adjourned to next year. It is alleged that on September 7, eight suspects were apprehended by authorities at 3am in a business area, where copper estimated at R3m was found, with a granulator and other specific tools used to steal copper.
In their bid for bail, Chetty and Harilall alleged that they had been at the property to inspect a Ford Ranger they had been mandated to fix by the owner.
They said they had been there two days earlier to inspect the vehicle and found it needed spares.
They said they had returned there after they found second-hand spares for the vehicle.
Daily News