The Bloemfontein magistrate’s court on Monday denied Nandipha Magudumana bail, saying she was a flight risk.
Magistrate Estelle de Lange said she was not convinced any bail conditions would “ensure she attends trial” and that Magudumana had failed to “satisfy the court that the interests of justice permit her release on bail”.
Magudumana, her father and other co-accused face charges related to the escape of rapist and murderer Thabo Bester, Magudumana’s boyfriend, from a Mangaung prison last year. Nine of her co-accused have been granted bail by different courts, while Bester and another accused abandoned their bids.
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Her bail bid ran over three days as the fraud accused doctor argued before magistrate De Lange that she had left the country under “pressure and threats” from Bester.
Her legal team spent considerable time arguing against the schedule level of the offences brought against her. The former places the burden to prove the interests of justice permit the release on bail of Magudumana while the latter moves it to the state.
Magudumana indicated to the court that she can afford R10,000 bail. The state opposed her application.
* This is a developing story
