About a briefcase and a Bible – and no bomb

MBOMBELA – When I left for court last Friday morning, I did not expect to encounter a briefcase and a Bible that would touch me the way the accused Mr Jeremano Thive’s did.

Thive was arrested on January 19, 2013 for allegedly poaching rhino and had been in custody in the city’s prison ever since.

The trial of Thive and his co-accused, Mr Andelius Mukwebe, had been a lengthy one thus far. After the state closed its case, they applied to be released. This application was denied.

Lowvelder attended their court appearance last Friday, and Thive’s fashionable briefcase caught the court reporter’s eye. This was not the only eye mesmerised by the bling briefcase. “Oooo, can I see what’s inside?” two of us asked at the same time. “Hey, you don’t know what’s in there. What if it’s a bomb?” came a comment from an unidentifiable conspiracy theorist.

I still took a step back and admired the practical artwork from a distance. Thive was the talk of the courtroom and the magistrate’s arrival caused the focus to shift to the task at hand. The session was barely adjourned before an interview with Thive had been requested. He agreed, but indicated that he did not speak English.

We met in a guarded cell where his attorney, Mr Daniel Mabunda, acted as interpreter. “Jeremano, where did you learn to make this suitcase?” I asked. “I saw that other people in prison were making suitcases, so I made one of my own as well. I used cardboard for the briefcase’s structure,” he said. “Like that of an OMO box?” I asked, and Thive nodded.

“I decorated it with magazine clippings and stitching. I used coloured plastic thread for the threading and a good quality zipper to open and close the briefcase.” He stitched pretty patterns on the briefcase as well.

I asked him if he would open it. He did so immediately, proud to demonstrate how easily the zipper opened and closed. Inside his briefcase were a jersey and a Bible.

“How much would you sell one of these for?” I wondered and did not expect his modest answer, “Twenty rand,” Daniel said what I was thinking, “I think you can ask a hundred.” The two of us and the security guards concurred: There was a market for these fashionable briefcases. With this fact established, our meeting had to come to a close as Thive had to go.