By Ed Stoddard
A Sasolburg man, accused of dragging an employee to his death behind a truck, has been remanded for psychiatric tests, a court said on Thursday, sparking clashes between black protesters and police.
Pieter Odendaal, a 44-year-old businessman, had been scheduled to appear before a Sasolburg court on Thursday, but the hearing was held in secret last Friday, a court official said.
"Odendaal was remanded for 30 days' psychiatric examination. He will next appear in court on October 26 when the examination is completed," the official said.
Odendaal is accused of tying Mosoko Rampuru, 37, to the back of his truck and dragging him five kilometres to his death last month. The trail of blood was visible for days afterwards.
At an appearance earlier this month, Odendaal was not asked to enter a plea. His lawyer said Odendaal did not remember killing Rampuru on the night of 25 August, and that a mixture of alcohol and medication may have resulted in memory loss.
Hundreds of protesters, who came hoping to catch a glimpse of the accused, vented their frustration by throwing stones and sticks at riot police who guarded the court building.
"We wanted to see this man's face so if they release him we can track him down and kill him," one man said. Another held up a sign calling for the return of the death penalty.
An official from the ruling African National Congress criticised the court's handling of the case.
"Odendaal's family was apparently informed about the change in his court appearance but the public was not. Nor was the victim's family, and this is a disgrace," said Moses Makume, the ANC chairperson in Sasolburg.
Makume called for a judge from outside Sasolburg to be brought in to hear the case because the black community was not convinced that justice would be served under a local magistrate.
He said racism was still rife in Sasolburg, a conservative, industrial city south of Johannesburg. - Reuters