Mamelodi's 'number one tsotsi' Mathibela faces losing bail money

Published Mar 25, 2019

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Johannesburg - Mamelodi taxi boss Vusi 'Khekhe' Mathibela, also dubbed Mamelodi's “number one tsotsi” could forfeit his R50 000 bail money he paid in 2015 after he was arrested as one of the suspects in the murder of North West billionaire Wandile Bozwana.

The State turned to the Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, in a bid to have the money forfeited and his bail in that case cancelled, but the case stood down to Thursday as Mathibela’s lawyer was not ready to proceed.

Mathibela was arrested last week on other charges after it was alleged that he ran an extortion ring in Mamelodi. It is claimed that he and his partners force local business people to pay him fees in return for protection.

The investigating officer in the Bozwana murder case, Detective Constable Evans Mongwe, in a statement to the high court, claimed that Mathibela had not adhered to his bail conditions.

Mathibela is facing murder and attempted murder charges in the high court over the 2015 murder of Bozwana. The businessman and his partner were gunned down in October 2015 when they stopped their car at the Garsfontein off-ramp, east of Pretoria.

Gunmen followed them and opened fire on their car. Bozwana died of his injuries, while Mpho Baloyi was severely injured when about 12 shots were fired at her and Bozwana. 

The case is party heard and it is due to resume again on July 1. Mathibela was guarded by several of his own guards each time he appeared on the Bozwana case. 

Mongwe claimed that Mathibela and his co-accused are linked to the Bozwana murder through CCTV footage and cellphone calls. He also said Mathibela’s co-accused had made confessions, implicating him.

He was granted R50 000 bail in that case, but it was subject to a number of conditions. This included that he was not arrested on any other offence after his release on bail. He had to hand over his passport and he was not allowed to leave Gauteng without the permission of the investigating officer.  He may also not contact witnesses in that case.

Mongwe said Mathibela did not adhere to these conditions, as he “interfered or attempted to interfere” with witnesses. One of these witnesses will on Thursday hand an affidavit to the court setting out what Mathibela had allegedly done to him. 

The witness claimed he was intimidated by Mathibela on January 15 this year, when he attended Mathibela’s trial. He subsequently opened a criminal case against Mathibela.

The latter was arrested on March 13 on charges of extortion, intimidation and assault. Mathibela subsequently appeared in the lower court and he is still in custody. 

His lawyer is due to approach the urgent court later this week to challenge his arrest and detention.

Mongwe meanwhile stated that there are a number of other similar cases opened against him. Those cases include malicious damage to property, intimidation, assault and extortion.

He said Mathibela never handed in his passport as he was required in the Bozwana bail conditions and he even left the country for a few days in October last year, without alerting the police. 

He also did not hand the title deed of his property, which he had given as security for his bail, to the police. A further complaint was that he on several occasions did not report to the Midrand police station, as required by his bail conditions.

Mongwe said it is not in the interest of justice that he remains on bail in the Bozwana case and said he should remain in custody until the finalisation of the Bozwana trial.

If the State succeeded in cancelling his bail in the Bozwana matter, any attempt by Mathibela to be freed in his present case before the lower court, could be futile as he will in any event remain behind bars.

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Pretoria News

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