It was reported that the court informed the men that they they would remain in custody.
The four men were charged with kidnapping, extortion and child abuse after their arrest earlier this month.
The men were transporting the 24-year-old woman and her eight-month-old baby from Zimbabwe to Brits on 1 January when they tried to extort R1 200 from her, saying that the transport fee had increased from R300 to R1 500. The woman could not pay the amount so the suspects held her baby and her hostage for five days, with no food or water, while they tried to extort the money from her husband, who lives in Brits. The mother was only given soft drinks during her confinement in a shack in Diepsloot Extension 6.
It was reported that two of the men applied for bail on 22 January while the other two could not apply for bail as they were in the country illegally.
It was also found that one of the suspects, who had applied for bail, has a pending arrest warrant dating from 2012.
The suspect was convicted six times between 2002 and 2011 for crimes including theft, possession of unlicensed ammunition, contravention of the Customs and Exiles Act, and aiding and abetting illegal foreigners to enter South Africa.
Both of the suspects who applied for bail were denied and the case has been postponed until next month for further investigation.
Read our first story, Mother and baby’s five day kidnap ordeal.
