Boeremag: Coffee 'bomb' a ploy
2003-09-22 23:50
Pretoria - Police blowing up an innocent coffee flask in court was just another example of attempts to "blacken our names, create an atmosphere and show how dangerous we are".
This was the reaction of 22 alleged members of the extremist rightwing Boeremag (Boer Force), who are standing trial for treason in the Pretoria High Court, after a police bomb squad "detonated" a suspicious coffee flask in court on Friday afternoon.
Police found the flask in the courtroom where the Boeremag case was being heard on Friday and did not want to guess whether the flask contained coffee or a bomb.
Members of the bomb disposal unit blew the flask to smithereens on the floor of the court, leaving a hole in the historic wooden floor and new carpet.
However, the court heard on Monday that the flask belonged to one of the accused, Dr Lets Pretorius, who had the coffee sent to him because the court did not provide the accused with coffee.
Paul Kruger, an attorney for the alleged Boeremag members, said the accused reported that the flask was forgotten in court on Friday.
Somebody was sent to fetch the flask, but the damage was already done, Kruger told judge Eben Kruger on Monday.
The 22 accused were very unhappy on Monday about the incident as reports in a Sunday newspaper about fears of renewed rightwing violence. The men said incidents such as these were used to create the wrong impression about them.