The lawyer representing Zachariah Johannes Olivier, the farm owner arrested in connection with the murders of two women at a pig farm outside Polokwane in Limpopo, is still struggling to get the docket detailing the case.
On Thursday, advocate Johannes Venter argued in the Limpopo High Court sitting in Polokwane before Judge President Moletjie Phatudi that the state’s refusal to furnish him with the statement derails his client’s bail application.
Olivier, 60, who is accused number one, was arrested on August 20 alongside his co-accused Andrian Rudolph de Wet and William Musora.
The three men are facing charges of premeditated murder, attempted murder, possession of unlicensed firearms and ammunition, and defeating the ends of justice.
Musora is facing an additional charge of contravening the Immigration Act for being in the country illegally.
They are accused of killing Mariah Makgato and Zimbabwean Kudzai Ndlovu and feeding them to the pigs at Onvervaght farm near Sebayeng in the outskirts of Polokwane in August.
On Thursday, Venter said since the arrests, he never got a chance to peruse the contents of the docket, making it impossible to prepare for the bail application.
The bail hearing is set for November 4 in the Mankweng magistrate’s court.
Travesty of justice
The case has been unable to commence, three times in the Mankweng magistrate’s court and once in the Polokwane regional court.
Venter argued that the continuous postponement of the case is a travesty of justice on the part of his client, Olivier, whom he said is a breadwinner of many families.
“The longer my client is kept behind bars, the longer many families are suffering. The state’s refusal to furnish me with the statement is a major hindrance to this case,” he said.
“The statement has a serious bearing on the bail application, and I need to go through it.”
He said without intimate knowledge of the contents of the case docket, he is unable to strategise on the bail application.
“Firstly, my client was forced to take the statement in my absence. Now I have to strategise with him but just don’t know where to start. I even don’t know where he is.
“How am I going to proceed with the case if I am not familiar with what is contained in the statement?
“These actions by the state amount to constitutional infringement on the right to access information,” he said.
Investigation is ongoing
The prosecutor, advocate Lethabo Mashiane, said there was never any request for the statement, but even so, the state will not furnish the appellant with the docket.
In his heads of arguments, Mashiane said the state is unable to provide Venter with the statement because its contents are critical to the ongoing investigations.
“It boggles my mind why a bail application cannot proceed because of the absence of this statement,” said Mashiane.
“I am not even sure whether the contents of this statement will be admissible in court during the bail application.”
He continued: “At this juncture, the state cannot give the defendant the statement because this could jeopardise the case.
“We are currently investigating this matter, and certain information contained in the statement could compromise the people who are due to be interviewed with regard to the case.”
Phatudi adjourned the matter to Friday.
