Riana’s alleged kidnappers apply for bail
Suspects deny all knowledge of crime or victim
Claiming to have no knowledge of who kidnapping victim Riana Pretorius was, or why they had been arrested, two of the men accused of abducting the 26-year-old biokineticist from her workplace in Newton Park pleaded to be released on bail.
Yesterday, the Gqeberha magistrate’s court was told Xolisile Rawutini and Xolani Kafile, both 40, were “incorrectly” accused of abducting Pretorius on March 16 as she arrived at the medical practice in Pickering Street just before 8am.
In his affidavit, read out in court by defence attorney Bond Nyoka, Rawutini claimed he had merely been the driver of the white Toyota Corolla which was later seized by the police.
According to Rawutini, who said he was a jikeleza driver from Motherwell, a day before the kidnapping a passenger had asked him if he wanted to make a quick buck.
Rawutini claimed the passenger offered him R200 to fetch someone from the Greenacres area on March 16, and that a car would be supplied to him.
“I was told someone would come to me with a vehicle as they did not have a driver’s licence.
“I thought it would be a good start to the day earning R200 in an hour and not using my own vehicle,” Rawutini said.
The next day someone showed up at his house with the Corolla and he made his way to Greenacres.
When they arrived at Greenacres, Rawutini said they were unable to locate the person they were looking for and left.
Driving along Old Grahamstown Road, towards Motherwell, Rawutini said he became nervous when a speeding car came up behind him.
“I decided to stop the vehicle and the passenger next to me jumped out and fled.
“I know crime is rife in the area so I jumped out the vehicle and ran away too,” he said.
He said police caught up to him and arrested him on the spot.
Rawutini claimed after his arrest he was beaten by police officers, pepper-sprayed and had a bag placed over his head while they demanded he tell them where the woman was.
He denied any knowledge of the kidnapping or demands of a ransom and said he intended to plead not guilty to the charges.
Meanwhile, in an affidavit read out in court by defence attorney Wayne Mac Gear, Kafile, from Mooiplaas, claimed he was not even in Gqeberha at the time of the kidnapping and had never met Rawutini until they appeared in court together.
Kafile was arrested on March 28 near Amalinda in East London while waiting for a friend.
A convicted robber who had served four years of his eight-year sentence and was on parole at the time of his arrest, Kafile claimed he was also assaulted and sworn at by police officers.
He said after he was arrested and taken to the Cambridge police station, he was then taken to Alexandria where members of the Hawks collected him and brought him to Gqeberha.
Kafile said he was then taken to a house where two white police officers told him in Afrikaans: “You f*ck*ng k***ir, tell us where the girl is.”
Kafile denied any knowledge of the kidnapping and the alleged ransom demands.
The two men have been charged with kidnapping, robbery with aggravating circumstances, human trafficking, extortion, possession of a prohibited firearm and ammunition, and possession of stolen property.
State advocate Benedict Wilson said the state was opposed to their release on bail, and that the accused faced a Schedule 6 offence.
Mac Gear said he would bring an application for the state to make the CCTV footage obtained from Pretorius’s workplace on the day of the offence available to the defence.
Wilson, meanwhile, indicated that further charges may be added.
During his first court appearance, Rawutini admitted that he had two pending cases of business robbery — one in Kariega and the other in Despatch.
He was out on bail at the time of his arrest.
Pretorius, who was released eight days after her abduction
— and a ransom payment of R1.1m made — has remained tight-lipped about her ordeal.
She was released to her family at about 2am on March 24 at a garage in Struandale.
She was physically unharmed apart from some bruising.
Rawutini and Kafile are expected back in court on April 13 for the continuation of their bail applications.