De Villiers’s ‘stalling tactics’

The pre-sentencing proceedings of model agency boss Dawie De Villiers, guilty of rape, sexual assault, and sexual grooming, was postponed in the Palm Ridge Magistrate’s Court yesterday.

Advocate Anton Lerm, standing in for De Villiers’s new council, made an application to have the pre-sentencing postponed for a further six weeks.

This was for the pre-sentencing report to be compiled, and for an order to be made for the trial to be transcribed so he could update his new defence team.

The founder of Modelling South Africa was found guilty last month.

Prosecutor Arveena Persad told the court she had been contacted by Legal Aid on Monday, and was told De Villiers was seeking assistance and that the advocate allocated to him had another matter to deal with and could not be present.

Lerm told Judge Cassim Moosa De Villiers had shown him proof that he had paid a private practitioner, who would compile the pre-sentencing report.

“She was previously the compiler of the pre-sentencing report, but now she has been placed with funds,” Lerm said. “After the six weeks, they will be ready.”

But Persad said it was unnecessary for the proceedings to be transcribed, as the case was in the sentencing stage.

She reminded the court De Villiers was recording the proceedings and making notes during the trial. She said his council at the time was also taking notes of the trial. She added that the judgment by the court could also be used by the pre-sentencing report practitioner.

Persad argued the case had gone on for too long, and the transcription in another case she was working on had taken about two years, and she did not think a court order could make the transcribers move faster.

She said that if the matter was postponed for a lengthy period, De Villiers’s bail conditions would need to be reviewed as he was already convicted.

Lerm said the state had the right to oppose the postponement, but it would be easier to work with a hard copy transcript of the trial than from a computer screen.

Persad provided an e-mail that was written in Afrikaans stating consultations had been done by the pre-sentencing report practitioner and the only setback was that payment was not made.

The matter was postponed to March 17. – ANA

The former model agency boss has asked the court for a transcript of his trial. But the prosecution is not having it.