Pretoria - Former crime intelligence boss Richard Mdluli again failed to appear in court on Monday, apparently because of health reasons which his lawyer did not want to divulge in open court as it was “confidential.”
Mdluli’s two co-accused, Heine Bernard and Solomon Lazarus, however, appeared in the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria without him. The three face a host of charges regarding the alleged looting of a crime intelligence slush fund.
Mdluli is serving a five year sentence for kidnapping, assaulting and intimidating Oupa Ramogibe, his customary wife’s new husband, in 1998. This was while Mdluli was commander of the Vosloorus police station.
He also failed to appear in court in November, citing medical reasons for his no show. Judge Bert Bam was told in chambers about his medical condition and he was shown a medical certificate by Mdluli’s doctor.
While his medical condition was not being divulged in court, Judge Bam was told that according to Mdluli’s doctor, he should be up and about again from February 11.
The state and the legal representatives will meet the judge again on February 19, when a pre-trial conference will be held to pave the way forward in the trial. The accused will not be present and they will return to court again on March 4, when they are expected to answer to the hefty indictment running into more than 70 pages.
The 63-year-old Mdluli and his co-accused, who are both 58, face several charges of fraud, corruption and theft relating to funds in the secret service account used to finance covert projects, investigations and operations. Bernard is facing an additional charge of defeating the administration of justice.
The allegations against them include the payment of private trips to China and Singapore, the private use of witness protection houses and the leasing of Mdluli’s private residence to the state in order to pay his bond.
It is claimed in the indictment that during one of Mdluli’s trips to Singapore in 2009, he allegedly used some of the funds for personal expenses. It is claimed he had bought electronic equipment, clothing, jewellery and perfume using the state’s purse.
A further allegation is that a month prior to the Singapore trip, Mdluli booked a holiday for himself and his wife to China, flying business class, on taxpayers’ expenses. It is also claimed he had used the slush fund to buy new shoes and electronics and finance their sightseeing trips.
Pretoria News