On Thursday, November 25 the 14 people accused of beating and setting alight nine young men in Zandspruit in May made a brief appearance in the Roodepoort Magistrates’ Court after the court granted bail of R3 000 each to three applicants in September.
Magistrate Ruby Matthys postponed the matter to January 8, 2022 and it will be heard in the South Gauteng High Court, possibly at the Palm Ridge court.
Out of the 14 accused, the court previously granted bail to Phakisa Tsengiwe, Phillimon Seemela and Phiwe Khubeka who were found to be bound to the court’s jurisdiction by family and work.
Tebogo Mabula, Mziwamangware Witbooi, Njabulo Zwane, Klaas Masemola, Joshua Mabotze, Alfred Mollo, Peter Mufomadi, Douglas Tshuma and Charles Ramoshia were all denied bail, while Maxwell Mpofu and Everyone Moyo abandoned their bail applications.
Twelve of the accused are charged jointly with eight counts of murder, attempted murder, nine counts of kidnapping and nine counts of housebreaking.
During the evening of May 18 until the next morning a group of men and women from the Zandspruit community acted in concert by raiding the residences of a number of young men.
The men were kidnapped and assaulted in full view of families and friends, and later taken to a soccer field where nine of the victims were further assaulted and set alight.
Those who witnessed the horrific crime included children on their way to school and adults on their way to work.
After judgment was handed down for the bail application the matter was postponed to January 28.
