Fraudster smiles as his bail is denied
"Valentine seems to have a blatant disregard for the law."
The notorious Zak Valentine, the man accused of fraud after he faked his own death, appeared in the Krugersdorp Magistrates’ Court again on Wednesday, 2 November for his bail hearing.
Valentine has been in police custody since June and is also facing a murder charge.
The Magistrate previously adjourned the bail hearing after both the State and the Defence filed documents stating their reasons why Valentine should or should not be granted bail.
Magistrate Keith Page summarised the case before proceeding with the hearing.
He mentioned that the State had made an extremely good case as to why Valentine should not be granted bail, and started the summary by referring to previous cases in which State representations had kept the accused in custody, and eventually led to their incarceration. He also mentioned that with Schedule 5 offences, bail is seldom granted.
The Magistrate continued, pointing out the following:
• The investigating officer is investigating other cases that Valentine might be a part of
• Valentine is still reflected as deceased at the Department of Home Affairs
• Valentine has no form of identification as he has no ID
• At no stage did the accused contact his parents during the six months that he was presumed to be dead to rectify the presumption
• The accused has no income, no assets and no permanent address
• The court noticed that he has repeatedly conducted himself dishonestly during the offences
• The charges Valentine faces are of a serious nature as evidence involves the burning of a body beyond recognition
• The accused is aware of State witnesses and might interfere with or intimidate them while out on bail
• The accused might influence witnesses or conceal evidence while out on bail
• Valentine was previously in possession of a falsified ID
• The accused is blaming the Steyns – Cecilia, Marinda, Marcel and Leroux – who are currently standing accused of murdering three Krugersdorpers during May this year, and the two cases have been centralised, which means there is a suspect common to all the cases
• There has recently been a wave of violent crimes in Krugersdorp
• Locals are still shocked and outraged about the murders
Given the abovementioned points made by the court, one cannot ignore the fact that Valentine would be considered a flight risk if he were granted bail.
“Valentine seems to have a blatant disregard for the law,” Magistrate Page said.
Court considers Valentine’s affidavit:
The Magistrate expressed his concern with both where Valentine would be living while on bail, and the type and place of employment he would have should he be released.
“Mr Valentine Senior [Valentine’s father] didn’t even know where his son was residing before he was presumed dead,” Magistrate Page said. “He further allowed his loved ones to believe he was dead and didn’t contact them for six months.”
The Magistrate also described the job offer that Kia Kaha Ministries made to Valentine as border on ill-informed.
“Valentine is faced with charges of murdering a homeless man. It is possibly ignorant to place Valentine in an environment with homeless people. The Court is concerned about the fact that Valentine introduced himself to the Kia Kaha Ministries as Michael de Villiers, thus providing them with a false identity.”
The verdict:
Magistrate Page ruled that Valentine will not be granted bail and would remain in custody at the Johannesburg Prison until his next appearance. Valentine will appear with the Steyns and Marinda’s friend, Cecilia (also surnamed Steyn), on 7 November in the Krugersdorp Magistrates’ Court.
Also Read:
‘Dead man’s’bail application postponed
Trial by Facebook? Suspects found guilty on social media
One arrested for triple murder
