No warrants for photographers
2002-02-05 13:05
Cape Town - The Cape High Court declined to authorise warrants for the
arrest of photographers Benny Gool and Christo Lötter on
Tuesday.
Warrants for the arrests were requested on Monday in the Rashaad
Staggie murder trial by the prosecution team Jannie van Vuuren and
Piet Steyn, for allegedly ignoring subpoenas to attend the trial
and testify.
Four members of the People Against Gangsterism and Drugs (Pagad) - national co-ordinator Abdus-Salaam Ebrahim, security chief Salie
Abader, Pagad member Moegsien Mohamed and Abdur-Razaak Ebrahim - are facing charges in connection with the murder of Staggie.
Staggie was shot and set alight when he was confronted by an
angry mob as he alighted from his vehicle in front of his Salt
River, Cape Town home in August 1996.
Judge John Foxcroft said he had not yet read the volumes of
documents delivered to his office by counsel for both
photographers.
The documents related to a media application for the subpoenas,
compelling the two photographers to attend court and testify, to be
set aside.
Application not 'bad in law'
The judge rejected a contention by Van Vuuren that the
application was of a civil nature and had no place in a criminal
trial, and was therefore bad in law.
He said he wished to postpone the case to Monday to read the
documents which run to about 700 pages for each photographer.
A further hitch developed when counsel Paul Eia for three of the
four accused contended that the judge should not read the
application document.
Eia contended that the documents contained information
detrimental to his three clients, which was not yet evidence before
the court.
The court adjourned briefly for Eia to discuss the ramifications
of this with his clients.
Although the judge on Monday demanded an explanation for the
failure of the accused to be present in court, he did not insist on
the explanation in court when the hearing continued on Tuesday.
It is understood that the prosecution team explained to the
judge in chambers on Tuesday what the difficulties were in
transporting the accused from prison to court, but no explanation
of this was given in court.
- SAPA