Ijeoma bail bid pushed to Wednesday
Former Fort Hare professor accused of car theft was also found in possession of two IDs and believed to be in SA illegally
Former University of Fort Hare (UFH) lecturer Prof Edwin Ijeoma will have to spend another five nights in jail after his bail bid in his car theft case was postponed for a second time in the Zwelitsha magistrate’s court on Friday.
During his first bail attempt on Thursday, proceedings were halted because the court’s recording facilities were not functioning. On Friday, the facilities were restored and magistrate Eras Venter continued with proceedings.
However, Venter then decided to postpone the matter to Wednesday to allow the state time to verify documents submitted by Ijeoma to clarify his status in the country with the home affairs department.
Ijeoma took the stand after being called by his legal representative, advocate Mike Maseti, and tried to convince Venter he was not a flight risk.
He is charged with stealing a UFH vehicle with an estimated value of R500,000, according to prosecutor, advocate Mzukisi Mapuma.
Mapuma called investigating officer sergeant Khaya Stemele, from the Bhisho police station, to the stand. Stemele said Ijeoma had two SA identify documents that contained different names. Stemele also submitted a high court document that stated Ijeoma was in the country illegally.
Stemele said Ijeoma had private companies registered in his name that were conducting business with UFH, and that he had sourced “outside support” for those businesses using UFH.
He said when police secured a warrant of arrest for Ijeoma in March, officers were sent to Ijeoma’s house, but he did not co-operate with them. They decided to launch a sting operation through police informants who had spotted Ijeoma at a Qonce shopping centre on April 27.
“When we got the docket, we sent officers to his house in Qonce, but he was not co-operating with them. The gate was opened for the officers and Ijeoma refused to come out.
“Even during his arrest, he did not want to cooperate with us when we were ‘processing’ him.
“A woman whom the officers presumed to be Ijeoma’s wife gave them a cell number for his lawyer. Every time we visited his house we were ignored, and I did call him as well but he ignored me,” Stemele said.
“During my investigation, I had to establish the facts around Ijeoma’s status in the country and I got a court document [from the high court[] in Bhisho which stated he was in the country illegally.
“I made a request to the home affairs department to assist me and I was told to return today [Friday], but I had to be in court.
“They needed to verify the information with the national office in Pretoria. I also asked Ijeoma ‘who are you’ because I found that he had two SA IDs.”
Stemele said Ijeoma had been a “hard man to trace” because during the sting operation he evaded the police flying squad that had been dispatched to apprehend him. He said Ijeoma has been notified by the institution to return the vehicle, but he refused.
“He was with his lawyers when he told me that he had made a proposal to buy the car from the university, but they never showed me the paperwork.”
Ijeoma said he had sourced the funding for the vehicle in question on his own for the institution.