Johannesburg – The appearance of Czech fugitive Radovan Krejcir and another man will be in camera, the senior prosecutor said on Monday morning.

The men were due to appear in the Palm Ridge Magistrate’s Court in Alberton on Monday to face charges of attempted murder and kidnapping. Krejcir arrived at the court shortly after 10:00.

Security reasons

Senior prosecutor Kenny Ramavhoya said the decision was taken for security reasons.

“It happens most of the time when there are security concerns,” he said.

He denied there was secrecy surrounding the matter and said only the men’s first appearance was expected to be behind closed doors.

It was not immediately clear which part of the Criminal Procedure Act was invoked to hear the matter in camera.

In agreement with the defence, the matter was expected to be postponed to 2 December for a bail application, he said.

The charges of kidnapping and attempted murder related to an alleged incident in June.

Hospital

Later on Monday, in the South Gauteng High Court, a ruling was expected on whether Krejcir should be moved from detention to hospital following an urgent application by his lawyers which started on Sunday night and ran into the early hours of Monday morning.

Earlier on Monday Krejcir’s lawyer Ulrich Roux told SAfm that his client did not refuse to be examined by a state doctor but did not consent to have his blood drawn after his arrest on Friday.

“He did not feel safe. He was not convinced that the state doctor was in fact a medical practitioner and he did not want his blood to be drawn by that person. His blood had already been drawn by two independent doctors,” said Roux.

He said Krejcir was examined by two doctors on Saturday.

These doctors drew blood from Krejcir and, based on the blood test results, advised that he should be immediately admitted to hospital.

Roux said the state doctor’s examination was “highly inadequate”.

“He did not refuse to be examined. He was examined yesterday morning [Sunday] at twelve o’clock, and after we launched the urgent application to have him placed in a medical facility that same doctor attended to the holding cells where our client is being detained and then attempted to draw blood which our client duly refused.”

Roux told SAfm that his basic constitutional right to legal representation and medical care had been infringed.

On Sunday it was reported that Krejcir had also laid charges of assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm and attempted murder against the SA Police Service.

His lawyers claimed that Krejcir was assaulted and tasered following his arrest on Friday.

The Independent Police Investigative Directorate said on Monday it would investigate these allegations.

– SAPA