Picture: The local businessman and owner of the Meat Brother Pub, Tshwaro Mangwegape/Facebook
By OBAKENG MAJE
The judgment on a bail hearing against a local businessman and the Meat Brothers Pub owner, Tshwaro Mangwegape’s attempted murder and murder case has been postponed to 19 January 2024. This comes after both the defense and state completed their head of arguments in the bail application at Taung Magistrate’s Court on 5 January 2024.
Mangwegape’s arrest comes after he allegedly shot and killed the NWU Soccer Institute player, Undivile “Vilo” Mdi (28), and injured his childhood friend, Aobakwe Ernest Kokwe (33) during a commotion at the Meat Brothers Pub on 17 December 2023.
Mdi and Kokwe were among the patrons who visited the well-packed establishment to have fun. It is alleged that the security guards refused entry to patrons who did not have Identification Documents (IDs) and that led to a stampede.
Mdi and Kokowe allegedly tried to gain entry forcefully and that prompted Mangwegape to pull out a gun and shoot at them. Mdi was fatally shot, while his friend was rushed to the hospital with terrible gunshot wounds for medical attention.
According to the state prosecutor, Ntebaleng Khula, Mangwape (41) should not be granted bail because of his conduct. Khula told the court that, Mangwegape had a previous attempted murder case, where he shot and injured an individual with his firearm. She said that even though the case was withdrawn, there was an attempt by the alleged victim to reinstate it.
“Section 60 (11) (b) of Act 51 of 1977 provides that, in Schedule 5, but not in Schedule 6, the court shall order that the accused be detained in custody until he or she is dealt with in accordance with the law, unless the accused, having been given a reasonable opportunity to do so, adduces evidence which satisfies the court that the interests of justice permit his or her release.
“So, the accused said nothing that can convince this court that, he is eligible to be admitted for bail. He had an attempted murder case, where he shot and injured an individual at the same establishment, where he allegedly committed the crimes he is facing now,” she said.
Khula further said this shows that, Mangwegape is a danger to society and he may commit other crimes or interfere with investigations while on bail. Khula added that, the community also shows displeasure and it is evident through the petition it submitted to the court.
“Over 300 people signed the petition and this shows how outrageous the community is. Even the accused who took the stand said, he would have reacted the same way. So, the court should consider the concerns of the community when making a ruling on this matter.
“We understand that, no amount of jail time could justify the committed crimes or bring back the deceased, however, the justice system has a responsibility to ensure that, there is restoration of peace by removing perpetrators from the society,” she said.
Khula said the accused has given the court three addresses from different provinces, where he will reside at when granted bail. She said, however, it will be difficult to monitor him and that might give him the edge to evade the case due to the distance.
However, Magwegape’s defense attorney, Isang Nakale refuted Khula’s reasoning as pure speculation. Nakale said Mangwegape is a predilection person, who attends courts without any hassle.
“When we look at the petition signed by the community members, there are no signatures, no addresses, and even some names are duplicated. There is a proven track record that, the accused attend courts regularly without fail.
“He does not have any pending cases against his name and all cases he faced were finalized. You cannot say my client might commit crimes while on bail so he must be kept incarcerated. I must warn the court that it is equivalent to anticipatory punishment,” he said.
Nakale said Khula should substantiate her reasons with evidence because his client showed unambiguously that he attends court cases. He said the ballistic tests report might take long and that, should also be taken into consideration.
Meanwhile, the magistrate, Botsile Thaga said he would hand over the judgment on 19 January 2024 after applying his mind on the matter.
The Guardian 