Mahlamba's legal representative, Advocate Joseph Kgoelenya, tells OFM News that his client has given him a direct instruction to first notify Magistrate Deon van Rooyen, and then file papers with the High Court. 

This after Magistrate Van Rooyen denied Mahlamba bail today, citing a prima facie case following strings of alleged credible statements from state witnesses who implicated him in the murder of Horner. Alleged evidence such as blood-stained trousers, amongst others, were found and confiscated in his shanty said to be shared amongst him and his brother. Kgoelenya, however, brushed off the evidence and says this by no means incremented his client because no forensic evidence has furnished in court yet which could suggest that this blood belongs to Mahlamba.

State witness and the leading investigator, Captain Pieter Myburgh, previously told Magistrate Van Rooyen that according to witnesses, Mahlamba and co-accused Sekola Matlaletsa (44) were heard bragging about how they stabbed a white male who was giving them problems.

Mahlamba was allegedly seen with the wallet belonging to the deceased at a local tavern in Fateng Tsentsho in Paul Roux before their arrest on the night of Saturday 3 October.

According to the witness, Mahlamba - in company of Matlaletsa and the third unidentified man - were seen descending from behind the mountains from the direction where the attack on Brendin had taken place at the De Rust farm. His clothes were allegedly bloodstained.

Meanwhile, Matlaletsa has been granted R 5 000 bail. Magistrate Van Rooyen cited weak evidence against him he said there is no direct material evidence linking Matlaletsa to the crime he is charged with. Furthermore, the DNA analyses of the bloodstains found in Horner’s bakkie which were conducted at a private lab, were inconclusive with regards to accused number 2. Van Rooyen added that he was satisfied that the 44-year-old is not a flight risk as alleged by the state because he has fixed and immovable property in Paul Roux, with no familial ties in Lesotho as alluded to by investigator Pieter Myburgh in his testimony. Meanwhile, the case has been postponed to 1 December 2020 for further investigation.

 OFM News