Nelspruit – A Mpumalanga man accused of keeping two Mozambican children as sex slaves at his house was released on R2000 bail on Friday, a Sapa correspondent reported.

The 52-year-old man, who lives in KaMhlushwa township near Malalane but originally comes from Mozambique, was not asked to plead.

He faced two charges of rape when he appeared in the Nelspruit Regional Court.

“The court decided to give him R2000 bail after his fourth appearance,” said Mpumalanga police spokesman Colonel Leonard Hlathi.

The man was arrested on June 25 after residents reported that a man was keeping two Mozambican girls, now aged 10 and 14, as sex slaves at his house.

“According to information that the police have, the two girls were left at the man’s house by a relative. Some residents observed the relationship between the man and the girls and found it to be suspicious,” said Hlathi.

The matter was postponed to September 6 for further police investigation.

Sapa

Cape Town – A man who allegedly bought liquor using counterfeit R200 notes appeared briefly in the Bellville Specialised Commercial Crimes Court in Cape Town, on Friday.

Colin Diergaardt, 38, allegedly gave some of the notes to three friends to buy liquor in Lamberts Bay in September 2004.

One of the friends, Koos Links, allegedly bought a case of beer while Anthony van Zyl, another friend, bought three five-litre containers of wine.

All four men were arrested soon afterwards, after R22 800 in counterfeit notes was allegedly found in their possession.

The men face charges of conspiracy to commit fraud, possession of counterfeit money and purchasing goods with counterfeit money.

Only Diergaardt appeared in court on Friday with magistrate Sabrina Sonnenberg postponing the matter to Thursday.

Sapa

Johannesburg – Kagiso Moeti is a prisoner in his own house. Two years ago, the 18-year-old was beaten up so badly with a golf club, it put him in a wheelchair.

Today, he can’t move his right hand. Part of his skull has caved in and he walks with a limp.

His attacker, Zolani Nyengele, was convicted of attempted murder. But he is back on the streets after serving only 10 months of his five-year jail term.
For more http://www.iol.co.za

The case against nearly 200 people, accused of being in possession of human feces, has been postponed to the 25th of October in the Cape Town Magistrate’s court.
For more http://www.sabc.co.za

Gauteng police have launched a manhunt for a suspected robber following a shootout in the Johannesburg city centre on Thursday.
One was killed during the shoot-out and two others were arrested. The fourth suspect is still on the run.
For more http://www.sabc.co.za

President Jacob Zuma has received an overwhelming welcome at Botshabelo, east of Bloemfontein in the Free State.

The President is in the area to campaign for next year’s general election. Zuma has called on people of Botshabelo to watch out for mushrooming political organisations and warned them not to throw away their votes by voting for them.
For more http://www.sabc.co.za

Johannesburg – Police on Friday confirmed that a University of Johannesburg student was arrested after a 23-year-old woman was kidnapped from the Kingsway campus on Thursday, Beeld reported.

The woman’s VW Polo car was traced to the suspect’s house, Eyewitness News reported.
For more http://www.news24.com

Durban – Three men accused of killing an ANC branch leader appeared briefly in the Durban Magistrate’s Court on Friday.

The case against Bongukwanda Excellent Gasa, Sipho Innocent Sikhakhane, and Skhulu Phiwayinkosi Gasa was postponed to 13 August.

They had been expected to bring a formal bail application, but defence attorney Laurens de Klerk asked for a postponement because the State was not satisfied with their residential addresses.

“We were given addresses in the Nkandla area, but those addresses are not appropriate for the State. We still need to verify addresses the defence will give to us,” said prosecutor Blackie Swart.

De Klerk said he would put forward an address for a safe house which could be easily monitored and was close to a police station should the court grant the men bail.

They are accused of killing Sithembiso Ngidi, an executive member of the African National Congress ward 75, Jacobs area branch.

Ngidi was shot dead on 23 June after taking part in a door-to-door election campaign in Lamontville, south of Durban.

The three were arrested on 2 July on murder charges.

The courtroom was filled to capacity on Friday with members of the Inkatha Freedom Party and the ANC.

– SAPA

Potchefstroom – Tlokwe’s DA mayor Annette Combrink was granted access to the municipality’s office and was working on Thursday, after the ANC refused to vacate it earlier in the week.

“She was at the office by 9am,” Democratic Alliance North West leader Chris Hattingh said.

When Combrink arrived at the door, ousted African National Congress mayor Maphetle Maphetle gave her advice.

“Today in the morning, Maphetle gave her a lot of advice before she went into the office. She is in the office working,” said Hattingh.

On Wednesday, the ANC said it would vacate the office after initially refusing and saying it planned to appeal an earlier court ruling ordering it to do so. The party intended reclaiming its majority in the upcoming by-elections.

Maphetle has been unseated twice, the first time in November, then again in July. The ANC’s North West provincial disciplinary committee expelled 14 of its councillors following the second unseating.

Sapa

Mmabatho – Cosatu in North West on Thursday welcomed a Mmabatho High Court judgment in favour of farm workers and farm dwellers.

“(We) believe the judgment is a lesson for those intransigent councils who believe that human dignity and lives are nothing,” provincial Congress of SA Trade Unions secretary Solly Phetoe said.

The group was evicted from Boshoek, between Sun City and Rustenburg, by the Royal Bafokeng and the Rustenburg municipality, the two respondents in the matter.

The trade union federation called on the Royal Bafokeng to respect the judgment and carry out the order that the houses of all farm workers and farm dwellers be rebuilt within three days. The judgment also instructed the respondents to ensure that running water and electricity to the houses was reconnected, according to Phetoe.

He said they argued that the demolition of their houses was unnecessary, as many had been staying in the area for more than 20 years.

Sapa