Dr Nandipha Magudumana and her co-accused, including former G4S security guard supervisor Senohe Matsoara, Integriton technician Teboho James Lipholo, Buti Masukela, Nastassja Jansen, and Tieho Frans Makhotsa will apply for bail. This is set over two days.

Magudumana and her co-accused face charges which include, among others, fraud, and aiding and abetting a convict to escape from lawful custody.

The state has dropped the murder charge against the former G4S security guard supervisor Matsoara. 

The withdrawal comes after the police informed the family of Katlego Bereng Mpholo that his charred body was found inside Thabo Bester's cell. It was used as a decoy for Bester to escape and he was found with blunt-force trauma to his head. 

It is understood that the police informed his family that Katlego died after he collapsed and was taken to hospital. The family denies that it is what truly happened. They believe that Katlego, whose body was claimed by Bester's girlfriend Nandipha Magudumana from the government mortuary, was murdered for Bester's escape plans.

The state has now withdrawn the murder charges against two suspects.

It first withdrew the charges of murder against Magudumana's father, Zolile Sekeleni, who was granted bail of R10 000 in his last court appearance.

Since the state withdrew these charges it now means that the case falls from schedule 6 to 1 placing the onus directly with the state to prove its case against the suspects.

Recently the NPA Free State spokesperson, Phaladi Shuping, said in a statement that the unnatural death of Bereng is still under investigation and that at this stage, there is insufficient evidence to pursue a murder charge.

Bester escaped from the Bloemfontein Mangaung prison on May 2022 and allegedly had a lavish lifestyle in Johannesburg. After the news broke that he had escaped and not died in a fire staged in his cell 35 in the Broadway section, he fled with Magudumana to Tanzania. They were arrested by the Tanzanian police in April 2023 and were brought back to South Africa in the early hours of 13 April 2023.

Bester is being kept at the Kgosi Mampuru maximum prison centre in Pretoria. He will again appear in court on 16 May 2023.

OFM News