Fort Hare murder accused set to make fourth bail bid
Sacked University of Fort Hare vetting & investigations director Isaac Plaatjies is gearing up for another fight in the Makhanda high court to be released on bail.
Plaatjies, 56, is going for round four of his bid to be released, having approached the high court to appeal against magistrate Zweletu Ngetu’s denial of bail on what he presented as new facts last week.
Ngetu found that the evidence presented by Plaatjies was not new.
He is one of 10 people accused of committing violence against university officials, including the murders of two officials.
Petrus Roets, the university ’ s fleet manager, died in a hail of bullets in Gonubie in East London in 2022.
Mboneli Vesele, bodyguard of vice-chancellor Sakhela Buhlungu, was gunned down in Dikeni in January 2023.
In court papers in the high court, Plaatjies says Ngetu “grossly misdirected himself in his assessment of the new facts set out in the appellant’s affidavit for the bail application moved on January 26 2024”.
A date for a hearing is yet to be set by the court.
In court on Tuesday, Plaatjies’s attorney, Elias Makhanya, said they would make representations before the director of public prosecutions (DPP) after receiving the case docket from the prosecution.
The state alleges Plaatjies provided the list of the names of people to be targeted.
It is alleged he was in contact with one of the accused and visited him at a B&B in East London a day before Vesele was killed.
The other accused are former UFH employees Bongani Peter and Wanini Khuza, former student leader Sicelo Mbulawa, Mthobisi Khanyile, Mthobisi Dlamini, suspended police officer Lindokuhle Manjati, businessman Zimele Chiliza and attorney Phelisa Nkonyeni.
They will be back in court on October 8 after their case was transferred to the Bhisho high court on Tuesday.
Regional National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Luxolo Tyali said: “The state will yet again oppose this [bail] attempt as it strongly believes his release may cause interference with witnesses.”