Alleged ‘economic sabotage’ instigator Bruce Aldrin Nimmerhoudt remanded in custody
BRUCE Aldrin Nimmerhoudt, a senior Patriotic Alliance member in Johannesburg charged with inciting mobs to attack malls on Gauteng’s West Rand, was ordered to apply for bail after seven days.
Nimmerhoudt, 45, of Toekomsrus in Randfontein, made a brief appearance at the Roodepoort Magistrate’s Court yesterday.
He was not asked to plead on the charge of incitement to violence following his arrest at his other home in Witpoortjie, west of Joburg, on July 16.
Nimmerhoudt was remanded in custody until July 26.
He allegedly made a call via a video clip to his supporters and members of the ANC Youth League and ANC Women’s League on Thursday last week to join him and attack malls in Roodepoort, Krugersdorp, Randfontein and businesses in the neighbouring suburbs.
Nimmerhoudt allegedly also urged his supporters to block all main roads in Main Reef and carry out attacks on trucks delivering goods to various premises on the West Rand.
An audio clip led to some residents of suburbs west of Joburg and in the West Rand region making frantic calls to their residential security companies and neighbourhood watches to join in the search for the person behind the recording.
The alleged instigator said: “Communities of the West Rand are much stronger but we are much more. Do not attack schools, do not attack health-care facilities, but malls, you can do whatever you want. Do not attack any person except for those who stand in your way.”
In a bid to protect residents, Farhaad Sardiwala, the deputy chairperson of the Florida Community Policing Forum (CPF), sent the clip to the police and crime intelligence.
At the time of the circulation of the video, things had returned to normal in Roodepoort following running battles between the police, security officers and the looters on Tuesday.
Looters had attempted to attack one of the bottle stores of a warehouse and a retail shop in the Roodepoort CBD.
On Friday, however, West Rand residents expressed relief following Nimmerhoudt’s arrest in the early hours of the morning, at one of his identified residential addresses in Witpoortjie.
He was arrested after police received the audio clip and tasked all sources and contacts to establish the origin of it.
When he was arrested, police allegedly recovered three cellphones in his possession that form part of their investigation. According to the police, Nimmerhoudt confessed to his involvement in the production of the video.
He was detained in the Randfontein Police Station holding cells before his appearance in court yesterday.