Internationally acclaimed amapiano producer DJ Maphorisa, born Themba Sekowe, has been released on R4 000 bail.
Maphorisa appeared briefly in the Randburg magistrate’s court on Monday afternoon after his girlfriend, Thulisile Phongolo, unleashed cops on him for assault on Sunday.
After a minor delay due to unpreparedness of his legal team, Maphorisa, wearing a black jacket, jeans, and a beanie, returned to the dock for court proceedings.
He later received a bail of R4 000 after Phongolo confirmed the contents entailed in her withdrawal statement.
The court emphasized that even though the bail has been granted, Maphorisa is not allowed to meet up with the complainant, speak to or even try to contact Phongolo.
Phongolo, wearing a black jacket, grey sweatpants and shades, was also in attendance together with her managerial team and family members.
However, attempts to speak to her were thwarted by her manager, who shielded her from journalists.
The 29-year-old former TV presenter told the police on Sunday that she had a squabble with the Ba Straata hitmaker after confronting him about an argument at a gig on Saturday night.
She said in a statement: “I confronted him so that we can talk about our argument, which happened the previous night during his gig.”
The actress said the acclaimed music producer responded aggressively and started slapping her on the face.
“He held me, took me to the balcony, and grabbed me aggressively by my neck,” Phongolo, who once starred in Generations: The Legacy as Namhla Diale, said.
The actress’ management team said at the time that Phongolo was with her road manager when she went to the police station to open a case of assault.
“We are still trying to gather how she is doing. I am seeing her in the next hour … We just need to actually figure out what is happening … She was with her road manager,” said Phongolo’s manager.
Maphorisa, who is also known as Phori, was allegedly arrested during the day after the Sandton police showed up at his house.
A source close to the case said the muso tried to get bail on the spot, but his attempts were turned down.
“He is facing a serious charge of assault GBV [gender-based violence] and he can only get bail in court for that, so he has to stay behind bars overnight before he can get bail,” said the source.
Phongolo and Maphorisa have been dating on and off for close to two years. The case has been remanded to June 14 for further investigation.
Also read: ANC wants North West pastor caught with pants down fired
Follow @SundayWorldZA on Twitter and @sundayworldza on Instagram, or like our Facebook Page, Sunday World, by clicking here for the latest breaking news in South Africa. To Subscribe to Sunday World, click here.
