Protestors outside the Piet Retief Magistrate's Court during the bail hearing for the five accused in the case in which the Coka brothers were shot and killed on 19 April 2021. Picture: Jacques Nelles
A KwaZulu-Natal prosecutor is facing charges of defeating the ends of justice and corruption for allegedly making a case of malicious damage to property against a Mpumalanga farmer disappear.
The case was withdrawn without the knowledge of the complainant while the suspect, Volkrust farmer Daniel Malan, 38, was in prison awaiting bail on charges of the double murder of the Coka brothers.
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Opened by a farm dweller at iNgogo police station, the case, which had been dragging on since November 2019, was curiously withdrawn through “mediation” on 15 April 2021 days after Malan was arrested on 9 April for his alleged part in the murder of the Coka brothers.
In November 2019 Groenvlei farm dweller Maria Khumalo said she saw a farmer driving her goats onto his farm.
The mother, a resident of the farm since 1995, was with her two sons Sibonelo, 24 and Sabelo, who was 11 at the time.
She asked them to go home, about 2km away to bring her bakkie to load the goats while she approached the farmer.
“I politely asked the farmer to release my goats. He instead hurled insults at me, shouting ‘today you are going to mess your panties, you dirty K-word’ as he called other farmers,” Khumalo said.
She said the farmer and his neighbour started tormenting her, slapping and punching her while she lay helpless on the ground.
“They were pulling my skirt up, hitting me on my thighs and neck. I was humiliated, degraded and abused. Two bakkies full of farmers then arrived and I was tormented more,” Khumalo said.
READ MORE: ‘We’re not safe’: Coka family fears for their lives after murder accused get bail
She saw her sons driving up to the gate and signaled to them to run for their lives but the farmers took after them.
“Realising the farmers were catching up, my sons abandoned the vehicle and ran on foot in different directions. The farmers stopped and fired at them and then shot at my bakkie in a rage. They then collected to cover their tracks. My sons would be dead today if they did not run off,” Khumalo said.
She opened a case of assault at the Groenvlei police station and of malicious damage to property at iNgogo police station but neither of the cases went anywhere.
“On the assault case I was told there was no evidence and I learn now that the malicious damage to property case was mediated and withdrawn. Mediated with who because this is news to me? Who did the prosecutor mediate between?” she said.
Police investigators have subsequently followed up and opened a case of defeating the ends of justice and corruption against the prosecutor at the Newcastle police station.
According to a source close to the investigation, the case appeared to have been deliberately bungled from the start.
The detective explained that according to the complainant’s statement, a second charge of attempted murder should have been added to the docket as there was a shooting incident.
“The prosecutor acted illegally and we need to find out why. We do, however, know that the pending case would have made it impossible for Malan to get bail in the Coka matter,” the investigator said.
The detective, part of the high-level team assigned to the case of the alleged murder of Pampoenkraal farm dwellers Mgcini, 36, and Zenzele Coka, 39, said they were yet to hear from the police since opening the case against the prosecutor.
ALSO READ: Coka brothers murder suspects arrested for another double farm murder
KwaZulu-Natal provincial police spokesperson Captain Nqobile Gwala, confirmed the charges but said it was still under investigation.
“A case of defeating the ends of justice is being investigated by Newcastle police. Once the investigation has been completed, the docket will be sent to court for a decision,” she said.
Malan, Cornelius Greyling, 26, Othard Clingberg, 58, Michael Sternberg, 31, Andries Pienaar, 32, Werner Potgieter, 47 and Patrick Yende are facing two counts of murder each and one of assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm in connection with the death of the Coka brothers.
Greyling, Potgieter and Yende have since been re-arrested for another double murder charge in August last year.
– siphom@citizen.co.za
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