Pretoria - DA MP Glynnis Breytenbach had all but agreed to hand over her office keys, access card and laptop to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) officials until her former lawyer Gerhard Wagenaar stepped in.
This was the testimony of NPA risk specialist Scelo Xaba at the Pretoria North Magistrate's Court during the third day of the trial of the former prosecutor, who stands accused of contravening legislation by deleting data from her work computer.
Xaba, who had been assigned to serve Breytenbach her suspension letter and collect the NPA items, said she signed her suspension letter on April 29, 2012, and agreed to hand over her laptop. However, she said it was at her home at the time.
“She told me the laptop was at home and said if I wanted to I could accompany her to go collect it. She had no problem or hesitation.
“Wagenaar came and asked to take her out for coffee.
“We arranged we would meet back at her office at 11am for her to give us the laptop,” he said. “When I returned, they had the laptop, but refused to hand it to me, saying they were waiting for an IT specialist to clone the information and delete personal information first,” Xaba testified.
He told the court that when he requested the NPA laptop Wagenaar told him in an aggressive tone and demeanour the equipment would not be handed over until they were done with it.
“He was banging the table and saying I am telling you that we will not give you the laptop until we are finished with it first’,” said Xaba.
The risk specialist said as Wagenaar seemed ready for a confrontation, he decided not to push the matter. He left by midday when the specialist had not arrived and returned to find the laptop dismantled and a private specialist working on it, he said.
An agreement was made to collect the laptop the following day on May 1, 2012, as the cloning and deletion of personal information was to take six hours.
The duo’s legal representative Barry Roux, however, disputed this and said Wagenaar’s behaviour was in defence of Breytenbach’s constitutional right to privacy and the NPA’s reluctance to respect it.
“He was simply protecting her right,” said Roux.
Xaba said he only received Breytenbach’s laptop three days later. He disputed having authorised the cloning and deletion of any information and said he had only been assigned to fetch the items.
The charges against Breytenbach and Wagenaar stem from their alleged reluctance to hand over the laptop to NPA officials who were investigating misconduct allegations against her.
The NPA accused Breytenbach and Wagenaar of destroying official and private data on Breytenbach’s computer, which was in contravention of the NPA Act. She was head of the NPA’s specialised commercial crimes unit in Pretoria at the time.
Pretoria News