Durban - Two of the men accused of kidnapping Durban businesswoman Sandra Munsamy have hired former director of the National Prosecuting Authority, Mxolisi Nxasana to represent them.
The other two have hired top legal firm from Gauteng, BDK Attorneys and Lister amd Co to represent them.
On Monday when the four men appeared in the Durban Regional Court where they abandoned their bail.
This would give the Directorate for Priority Crimes Investigations (also known as the Hawks) more time to complete investigations, said spokesperson Brigadier Hangwani Mulaudzi.
The men are facing charges of kidnapping, extortion and attempted murder.
Munsamy went missing on May 31 after she was forced off the road in Pinetown. When security companies noticed what had happened, the kidnappers fired shots at them. Her car was abandoned at the side of the road.
Her abductors, who later made a R140 million ransom demand, then took her to a house in eMalahleni (Witbank), Mpumalanga.
Munsamy was rescued by the police after 162 days in captivity.
Mulaudzi said the Hawks raided properties in Honeydew, Mamelodi and eMalahleni. Moonsamy was found chained in a room in one of the houses. Firearms and luxury vehicles were seized.
Representing two of the accused was advocate Nxasana who is now in private practice. The remaining two defence attorneys did not want to be named for fear of intimidation. They told the court they were not going to apply for bail without perusing the docket. The court also hired an interpreter who could speak Portuguese to two of the men.
Nxasana asked the State to provide the defence team with warning statements, confessions and statements. Prosecutor Kuveshni Pillay acknowledged the request.
Pillay said the State was waiting for feedback from the Department of Home Affairs to confirm the nationalities of two of the accused. They are said to be from Mozambique. The matter will return to court on January 20.
Magistrate Anand Maharaj ordered that the media not take pictures or name the accused as yet. They were sent to Westville Correctional Services under police guard.
Mulaudzi said the delay gave them time to investigate thoroughly.
“We are also looking into matters that they may have outstanding cases in Mozambique,” he said.
Inderan Naicker, Sandra Munsamy’s brother, told the Daily News’ sister paper, Sunday Tribune, that his sister was not kidnapped over dodgy business deals. Naicker said his sister was allowed to make calls home while in captivity. He said she was recovering from the trauma.