Kimberley - More than two years after his arrest, the case of an alleged child pornographer from Warrenton was scrapped from the roll in the Barkly West Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday as the State “did not have its house in order”.
Roelof du Toit, 39, was arrested in Kimberley in January 2014 on charges of possessing, manufacturing and distributing child pornography, as well as sexually assaulting children, after an American police agent, posing as a 15-year-old, started corresponding with him via e-mail.
It was reported at the time of his arrest that Du Toit was found living with a 12-year-old street child in his New Park home in Kimberley.
Du Toit’s e-mail address was apparently obtained after pornographic material was allegedly sent from his address to a network of more than 40 people involved in child pornography in America.
Pictures of the boy who was found living with Du Toit, had also allegedly been distributed by Du Toit.
The chlld also reportedly told police about another boy, aged 10, who was also allegedly molested and photographed by Du Toit.
According to the charge sheet, Du Toit faced one charge of sexual assault, two of compelled sexual assault, two of sexual grooming and two of compelled rape.
However, after numerous postponements for Du Toit’s trial to commence, Magistrate Renier Pieterse scrapped the case from the court roll on Tuesday and ordered that it could only be placed back on the roll with written instruction from the Department of Public Prosecutions (DPP).
This ruling came after none of the witnesses, some hailing from the US, or the State prosecutor, Tshepo Sebego, were present in court on Tuesday.
The case was set down in February 2016 to commence on Tuesday, after four postponements since January 2014.
While the State requested yet another postponement, Du Toit’s legal representative, Advocate Sakkie Nel, opposed such a postponement, saying that his client had become “financially and emotionally drained” following the numerous postponements since his arrest.
He added that while he had only received the charge sheet earlier on Tuesday morning, it also appeared incomplete.
While Du Toit was currently on bail, he had spent a total of eight months in custody after his bail was previously denied.
Nel told the court that Du Toit was released on bail with stringent bail conditions, including being prohibited from using a computer, giving guitar lessons or leaving his hometown of Warrenton, adding that his client’s finances had “run out” and that he was now using his father’s pension fund to pay for legal expenses.
Nel added that the case had also taken an emotional toll on Du Toit, who had also received psychological therapy.
After Pieterse adjourned proceeding to allow time for a representative of the DPP to address the court, advocate Jaques Rosenburg, from the DPP, explained that Sebego was held up in a court in Upington and could not attend Tuesday’s proceedings.
However, Pieterse did not allow another postponement and scrapped Du Toit’s case from the roll and told him that he could collect his bail money.
The State will now only be able to proceed with the matter and charge and re-arrest Du Toit with written instructions from the DPP.
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