Judge’s signature likely forged: expert

INLSA

Duma Maqubela, Patrick Maqubelas son from a previous marriage, is in a legal wrangle over his fathers will. Picture: David ritchie

Cape Town - There is a high possibility that the signature on slain Acting Judge Patrick Maqubela’s last will and testament was forged, a control forensic analyst has said.

The trial is a Western Cape High Court matter but it is being heard in the Labour Court because some of Acting Judge Maqubela’s colleagues on the Bench are expected to be called as witnesses.

Colonel Marco Christopher van der Hammen testified on Wednesday that the acting judge’s signature was “not very complex or intricate in nature”, but he identified differences between the signature in the will and the sample signatures. “I found evidence… that the signature in question is in all probability, a [forged] signature,” he said.

Thandi Maqubela, the acting judge’s widow, is on trial for his murder. She has pleaded not guilty to murder, fraud and forgery relating to the will of the acting judge, who left R20 million.

Van der Hammen has 19 years’ experience in the examination of questioned documents, which includes individualisation of handwriting, signatures and identification of forgeries. Since 1991 he has examined about 3 500 cases of questioned documents.

In May 11, 2010, he was assigned by Lester Basson, of the Office of the Master of the High Court in Johannesburg, to examine the authenticity of the signature on the will. He used 50 documents with the acting judge’s signatures. “During my investigation I found that all specimens were written by the same person as they exhibited similar characteristics. My findings concluded that [the signature on the will] is not a genuine signature, but a free-hand simulation,” he said.

The trial continues on Monday.

nontando.mposo@inl.co.za

Cape Argus