The Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court granted R10,000 bail to Zolile Cornelius Sekeleni, the father of Dr Nandipha Magudumana, after they made a brief court appearance on Monday.
BLOEMFONTEIN – The Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court granted R10,000 bail to Zolile Cornelius Sekeleni, the father of Dr Nandipha Magudumana, after they made a brief appearance on Monday.
Sekeleni was granted bail on conditions that he reports to the Port Edward Police Station once a week, to remain within the magisterial district of Port Edward and is barred from contacting any of the State’s witnesses.
Sekeleni will return to the Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court on May 16. Failure to appear on that date and failure to adhere to his bail conditions would result in a warrant of arrest being issued for him, the court warned.
Sekeleni made a brief appearance alongside his daughter, Magudumana, and co-accused and former G4S prison warden Senohe Matsoara and Integritron CCTV technician Tebogo James Lipholo.
Magudumana, Matsoara and Lipholo were remanded in custody until their bail application, which has been set down for May 3 and 4.
The State has already made known its stance by opposing bail for all three accused.
Before delving into the details of bail, the State asked the court to instruct Magudumana to show her face during court proceedings.
The State said it could understand if she blocked her face from the media before court proceedings, however, while court was in session it was imperative that her face be revealed and clearly shown to the court.
The State said the court must be satisfied that the person appearing before it was in fact Magudumana.
Magudumana was dressed in a powder blue hoodie with the drawstring pulled tight to cover most of her face. She was also sporting a white mask covering her mouth and nose.
When the court agreed that her face should be shown in court, Magudumana pulled back her hoodie and pulled down her mask for a brief minute to reveal her face. She sat the rest of the appearance covered and with her head down.