Two Bronkhorstspruit farmers accused of assaulting and shooting at a 10-year old girl appeared in the Pretoria regional court on Tuesday.
Johannes Potgieter (33) and Hendrick Dumas (48) faced charges of attempted murder, kidnapping, assault and pointing a firearm after they allegedly cuffed the girl to a tree and hit her.
The case was moved from the Bronkhorstspruit magistrate’s court amid safety concerns.
Last year, a Bronkhorstspruit magistrate denied the pair bail, a decision which was later overturned by the Pretoria high court, citing that the men were not a flight risk.
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This led to the chaos outside the magistrate’s court when the men’s appearance as angry protesters accusing them of racism threatened to assault them.
The court building was damaged and some shops looted during the ensuing altercation.
Police had to fire rubber bullets to disperse the crowd before the pair was secretly evacuated from the courtroom.
The hearing was then moved to Pretoria.
It was alleged the girl, her younger brother and two friends were jogging with their dogs when the animals strayed.
In her statement, the girl said: “We were looking for the dogs and then suddenly we heard gunshots.”
She said she was captured by one of the accused, who had what she described as a “long gun”.
The other three children escaped.
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The case was postponed to 16 May.
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