Man accused of illegal weapon possession released on bail
Bruce Whitehead-King (43) appeared for a formal bail application in Nelspruit Magistrate's Court on Wednesday and was released conditionally.
MBOMBELA – Bruce Whitehead-King was found in possession of a large number of firearms and ammunition on September 18 on his farm at Uitkyk on the outskirts of Mbombela.
The weapons found in a container were allegedly not properly licensed, nor appropriately stored on his property. The discovery was allegedly worth well over R3 million.
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Brig Leonard Hlathi, the provincial spokesman for SAPS, confirmed that Whitehead-King was released on R10 000 bail, with certain conditions to be met.
Hlathi specified that he must report to the Nelspruit police three times a week. He also stated that the SAPS head office will take over this high-profile case.
Hlathi previously stated that 121 guns and over 12 712 rounds of ammunition were discovered. “Of the firearms discovered, 109 are the subject of investigation and are not registered in his name,” he said.
According to Hlathi, police received an anonymous tip-off and commenced with an investigation in collaboration with Bossies Community Justice.
“He is facing charges relating to the contravention of the Firearms Control Act 60 of 2000, as amended,” Hlathi stated.
Gabisile Shabalala, MEC for community safety, security and liaison, applauded the police for acting promptly to the tip-off received from the community.
According to Shabalala, this will encourage other community members to contribute to the crime fighting efforts of the police in the province. She stated that community participation is vital in order to bring the perpetrators of crime to book.
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The case was postponed to December 3 for further investigation.
