Thabo Bester and co-accused back in court as their trial begins. Image credit: EWN.
(The Post News)- The highly anticipated trial of convicted murderer and rapist Thabo Bester, along with his seven co-accused, is set to resume today at the Free State High Court in Bloemfontein. After Bester’s elaborate prison escape from the Mangaung Correctional Centre in May 2022, the group faces a total of 38 charges.
A series of delays, including legal issues surrounding Bester’s demands for specific detention conditions, have marred the case. Furthermore, in a pre-trial hearing in June, charges were withdrawn against a former G4S employee, Motanyane Masukela, who had been implicated in the escape.
Meanwhile, Dr. Nandipha Magudumana, Bester’s alleged accomplice, is also pursuing her own legal battles. Her legal team is now anticipated to contest her deportation in the Constitutional Court after the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) ruled that her 2023 arrest in Tanzania was valid.
This morning, the co-accused, which includes prison guards, will find out if the trial is ready to start. The charges against the group are extensive, including fraud, corruption, money laundering, assisting an inmate to escape, violation of a corpse, arson, and defeating the ends of justice.
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