Controversial businessman Katiso “KT” Molefe has been denied bail by the Alexandra Magistrate’s Court, where he is accused of murdering music producer and club owner Oupa John Sefoka, also known as DJ Sumbody.
Magistrate Renier Boshoff delivered the ruling on Wednesday morning
Boshoff said the charges and counts that Molefe is facing are serious and increase the likelihood of him absconding from his trial.
Molefe failed to put forward exceptional circumstances that he should be granted bail.
“As I have highlighted, there are a number of very concerning aspects not only linking the applicant to the crimes but also regarding his circle of influence and capabilities. His application for bail is refused,” said Boshoff.
Molefe is accused of being the mastermind of the 2022 murders of DJ Sumbody and his two bodyguards.
Molefe (61) and three alleged hitmen, Michael Pule Tau (55), Musa Kekana (35), and Tiego Floyd Mabusela (47), have been charged in relation to the murders of DJ Sumbody and his two bodyguards, Sibusiso Mokoena and Sandile Myeza.
Accused remanded in custody
The four men are facing three counts of murder, two counts of unlawful possession of a firearm, and one count of unlawful possession of ammunition in connection with the murders of DJ Sumbody, Mokoena, and Myeza in November 2022.
The trio were shot and killed by unknown men while travelling in their cars on November 20, 2022, at the corner of Woodmead and Woodland Drives in Sandton, Johannesburg.
Apart from Molefe, the three other accused have not brought a bail application. All the accused remain in custody. Molefe is kept at Kgosi Mampuru II Correctional Facility in Pretoria.
Molefe brought an application for bail on August 6, which the state opposed.
Closing arguments in Molefe’s bail application were heard on August 14, and Boshoff postponed the matter to August 20 to deliver his judgment.
Molefe is represented by advocate Michael Hellens SC.
Involvement in illicit drug trade
The four men were arrested on July 21, and they made their first court appearance on July 22.
Previously, during Molefe’s bail application, he said he should be granted bail because he was at home when police arrested him on July 21 for the murders of DJ Sumbody and his bodyguards.
The state said Molefe should not be granted bail because he is actively involved in illicit drug trade, highlighting that the murder of DJ Sumbody is linked to illicit drug trade.
The state further claimed that DJ Sumbody’s murder was a contract killing organised by Molefe.
“The applicant is a dangerous criminal with no regard for human life,” said the state prosecutor.
Mistaken for a whistleblower
Tau, Kekana, Mabusela and Molefe have also been charged with the murder of Vereeniging engineer Armand Swart.
Swart, who worked at Q Tech Engineering Company in Vereeniging, was shot and killed outside his workplace on April 17, 2024.
He was killed when the alleged hitmen mistook him for another employee who is a whistleblower. Molefe was granted the R100 000 bail in the Swart matter.
Tau, Kekana, Mabusela and Molefe have also been charged with murdering musician Hector Buthelezi, also known as DJ Vintos.
DJ Vintos was shot and killed in a hail of bullets in March 2022 outside a nightclub in Orlando East, Soweto.
