Springbok Elton Jantjies out on bail
WORLD Cup-winning South African flyhalf Elton Jantjies’s malicious damage to property case was postponed to June 3 by the Kempton Park Magistrate’s Court.
The case was postponed yesterday for further investigation, the court said yesterday.
Jantjies’s legal team said there was a possibility that the case could be resolved through mediation.
The NPA in Gauteng said Jantjies was charged with malicious damage to property and contravention of the aviation act.
He was arrested at OR Tambo International Airport on Sunday after an alleged incident on an Emirates flight from Dubai to Johannesburg.
The 31-year-old Springbok allegedly broke a light on the plane, his agent James Adams said, but local media reports suggested he was involved in an altercation with an air hostess.
Jantjies was released on bail and was expected to appear in the Kempton Park court in Gauteng.
Adams said Jantjies and his family were on their way home from Turkey with a layover in Dubai.
“It’s alleged that while on board the plane, a light was damaged. We believe the incident has been unnecessarily heightened. Our client, however, remains compliant with the investigation process and will address the matter with the seriousness it beckons. I can confirm that Mr Jantjies has been released and is not in police custody.”
Police spokesperson Athlende Mathe said: “The SAPS can confirm that the 31-year-old man who was arrested at OR Tambo International Airport for malicious damage to property has been released on bail.”
A report by News24 said Jantjies allegedly beat against the door of a toilet, while shouting at an air hostess. Witnesses said Jantjies’s hands were bloody from beating on the door. An air hostess allegedly emerged from the bathroom later on.