A senior advocate from the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) has been identified as a key player involved in singling out affluent individuals and bringing their cases to the Palm Ridge Magistrate’s Court.
The senior advocate, known as 'the blue-eyed boy' among his NPA colleagues, is accused of deliberately targeting both willing and unsuspecting victims, coercing them into paying money through false charges and trumped-up accusations.
Gary Naidoo, not his real name, detailed to The Star how the “blue eyed boy of the NPA” orchestrated their arrest together with the team of his investigating officers from the Eastern Cape”.
Naidoo said they were arrested in Silverton for an alleged fraud they committed in 2020, which was subsequently struck off the roll due to lack of evidence.
A year later, they were taken aback as they faced renewed arrests for the identical charges that had been dismissed by the high court on March 25, 2021, only to be reinstated under a different case number.
“The first charge that was struck off the court - we were about 70 of us, and that case was 335, now they charged us again but now there’s only 24 of us who are facing charges. The case number that goes with the duplicate is now 143.
“Nothing has changed from the charge sheet of the previous case, the only thing that’s changed is the number of people who are now charged and accuse number 1 was now accuse number 3,” Naidoo explained.
The Star has seen the original indictment of the 335 with all 70 names of the accused on it.
The publication has also seen the 143 charges which is the exact duplication of the 335 that was struck off the court roll, but the difference now was the number of accused were now scaled down to 24 instead of the initial 70.
The Star exposed the rot and corruption occurring at the Palm Ridge Magistrate’s Court earlier this month, revealing the extent of corruption and unjust treatment that ordinary citizens were enduring at the hands of those who were supposed to advocate for the marginalised.
Naidoo also revealed that he suspected that the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court was also part of the syndicate as he found it odd that the magistrate would sign off the J50 document without it being accompanied by the witness statement, which according to him, came in later in the days.
“How is it possible that J50 was signed on the 12 of January 2022, when the affidavit with the accused names only maintained and signed on February the 3rd?” asked Naidoo.
The victim’s version is consistent with The Star’s expose of the sinister network between magistrates and lawyers to siphon money from accused persons.
The alleged chain works as follows; before an accused is charged, members of the SAPS would call a prosecutor to tell them that they’re about to pounce on an eminent or rich individual.
The police then charge the person who will be surrendered to the courts the next day.
Unbeknownst to the accused, the prosecutor will put up a fight for the accused to remain in custody. The accused’s lawyer will them intervene giving the impression that the case against the accused is very strong but requires more funds to “mediate” the case.
After the accused pays more than the expected amount to his lawyer, the prosecutor will suddenly be lenient, and the accused will get off scott-free.
After The Star’s expose into the court’s misconduct, the NGO Right to Justice urged the NPA to promptly address the revelations concerning corruption at the Palm Ridge Magistrate Court.
The NGO said at the time: “The NPA should speedily and fully examine if it’s prosecutors are in corrupt deals with lawyers and police.”
Attempts to get NPA’s spokesperson Phindi Louw were unsuccessful.
The Department of Justice and Correctional Services spokesperson Crispin Phiri said the NPA and the magistrate were distinct entities in the state which were, operating autonomously.
“The Minister of Justice and Correctional Services, as a representative of the executive branch, lacks the power to probe accusations against personnel in these institutions. This duty falls upon law enforcement agencies and the magistrates commission,” Phiri explained.
He, however, said as the the department they recognise the seriousness of the allegations and called for a comprehensive investigation in ensuring a satisfactory resolution.
The Star