Thabo Bester’s dramatic prison escape continues to cast a long shadow over his legal battles.
The Free State High Court in Bloemfontein has dismissed his urgent bid to be transferred back to Kgosi Mampuru II C-Max in Gauteng.
The court was not persuaded by his lawyer, Advocate Moafrika Wa Maila’s vociferous argument that his client’s right of access to legal representation was being infringed.
Bester approached the court to challenge his transfer from Kgosi Mampuru II C-Max in Pretoria to eBongweni Super Maximum Correctional Facility in Kokstad, KwaZulu-Natal.
Bester unhappy to be in Kokstad prison
Maila complained that it was difficult to consult at the Kokstad facility, saying he has to use a telephone to communicate with Bester behind glass. He claims he is not allowed to bring a laptop or any electronic device into the facility. It is therefore difficult to prepare for the case.
Maila also attacked the Department of Correctional Services’ justification for the transfer, telling the court documentation was insufficient and merely stated that Bester “once escaped.”
“There is no explanation for it. By the time they took him to Kgosi Mampuru, had he not allegedly escaped from Mangaung? Obviously, he had. Now, what has changed? Is there any new thing that says maybe he is attempting to escape again, allegedly? Nothing like that,” Maila submitted.
Bester has documented history of escape
When Maila described the escape as “dinosaur old,” the court swiftly interjected, remarking that dinosaurs went extinct “60,000 years ago.”
After explaining that it was merely an expression, the court reminded him that Bester escaped about two years ago.
The court also rejected Maila’s assertion that the department’s reasoning was irrelevant, emphasising that Bester is a convicted inmate serving a 25-year sentence with a documented history of escape.
Correctional Services has right to transfer inmates
Regarding the complaint that travelling to KwaZulu-Natal was expensive, the court held that this was not the department’s fault. If there was a grievance, Maila should challenge the legislation empowering correctional authorities to transfer inmates.
In its ruling, the court found there was nothing “untoward” about the transfer. The court acknowledged that consultation might be inconvenient, but that Bester’s right to legal representation had not been infringed.
“There is nothing procedurally wrong, unlawful, unfair which has taken place. His rights of his choice of a legal representative are also not being infringed,” the court ruled. “They can consult with him there. They can make the necessary arrangements to consult with him virtually. It happens in the 21st century that many consultations are done virtually. There is no reason why it cannot be done.”
Bester transfer was for security reasons
The court was very clear when addressing the security concerns underpinning the transfer.
“Keep in mind that the reason he was transferred there was for security purposes because he has a record for escaping from a maximum security prison in Mangaung. He is now in a supermax, where hopefully there are better guiding systems,” the court stated.
“I don’t see any urgency in the matter, but on the merits, I don’t see no merits why he should be transferred back. Under circumstances, the application to be returned to Kgosi Mampuru or Leeuwkop is dismissed.”
No costs order has been made against Bester.
