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#PrellerSquareShooting: FS HOD to take hot seat today

───   LUCKY NKUYANE 09:38 Tue, 19 Nov 2019

#PrellerSquareShooting: FS HOD to take hot seat today | News Article

The Head of the Free State Health Department, David Motau, is amongst those lined up to testify in the murder trial of slain Louis Siemens in the Free State High Court on Tuesday 19 November.


Motau is today expected to give a detailed response to allegations that he is amongst those the alleged murder mastermind, Stanley Bakili, bribed for bed licensing. 

In a file retrieved from Siemens documents after his death, Bakili allegedly indicated to him that Motau is among those he bribed to have CityMed’s hospital bed licence amended to allow for more beds when the business partnership soured. 

A Pretoria-based auditor at Middel & Partners, Andre Dames, testified that Siemens paid more than R6 million from a company partly owned by CityMed, to Bakili, allegedly without his fellow shareholders’  knowledge or approval. It is alleged the deceased who was shot dead in Preller Square's basement parking on 10 May 2018, was paying bribes to government officials through Bakili who stands accused of murder, along with seven other people.

Siemens was the sole director of the above-mentioned company, named Maleba Trading and Services, in which City Med initially had a 49% stake, while Siemens’ Semela Trust had a 51% stake. The ownership of the company, which rented out surgical equipment to hospitals, including CityMed, would later change. Magistrate, Pitso Molitsoane, on Monday postponed the matter until today, after a Pretoria-based forensic science laboratory officer, Johanna Richter, testified on the murder weapon that allegedly killed Siemens. 

Richter told De Nysschen that the serial number of the gun was removed with a grinder to hinder any possible tracing of the weapon. Earlier, former Health MEC, Benny Malakoane, and a senior department official Pinky Belot testified at length on their encounter with Bakili. The two also denied any bribery allegations from Bakili. 

Bakili joins Molebatsi Mogoera, Kagiso Chabane, Mojalefa Jali Molusi, Moeketsi Lesia, Clive Tshivenga Karabo Tau and Sizwe Mpati in the dock. They are between the ages of 29 and 56 and include three police officers, a disbarred advocate, an accused in separate double murder cases, and a military man.


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