Dog fighters’ trial to start
The dog fighters appeared in court and their case was postponed
Following their appearance on Monday in the Nigel Regional Court, the dog fighters’ case was postponed again.
The 18 accused, aged between 22 and 48 are facing charges in terms of the Animal Protection Act No 71 of 1962 section 24.
The suspects were arrested last year when police closed down a dog fighting ring in Tsakane.
They were all in court hoping that Monday was their first day for the start of their trial but instead, Magistrate John Voogte postponed the case.
Giving the reasons for the case’s postponement, Voogte admitted that the plea of a new sitting arrangement or another courtroom where all the suspects would be able to sit down during the trial procedures as proposed by the suspects’ legal representatives was not yet finalised.
The case was then postponed until August 18 and Voogte emphasised that all the suspects are expected to be in court on that date.
He advised the accused to always attend the meetings with their attorneys. Smaragda Louw from Beauty Without Cruelty and Community Led Animal Welfare (CLAW) says they are happy that the case is still on track despite the fact that the start of the trial has taken too long.
“We will not stop protesting outside the court during the suspects’ appearance to fight cruelty towards animals,” concludes Louw.
