Two men in the dock for high treason

THE Phalaborwa circuit court of the Pretoria high court heard yesterday how a witness was recruited into an operation to bomb homes of ANC leaders in the area.

Dirkie Breytenbach, 21, who has turned state witness, told Judge Aubrey Ledwaba that he was recruited by two of the men accused of planning to bomb ANC leaders' homes and also terrorising townships around Phalaborwa.

Testifying on the second day of the high treason trial which started on Monday, Breytenbach said he was approached by the accused who said they had a plan to attack the homes of ANC leaders in the area. He then agreed to go with them.

The plan was hatched in such a way that they first had to identify the areas to be attacked. The areas were Namakgale and Lulekani townships, Mashishimale village and a bus terminus in town.

Breytenbach told the court he did not want to be involved in the attacks but only agreed to go along.

The accused were identified as Georgios Kiratzidis, 21, Marthinus Vorster, 20, and Ruan Louw, 21, all from Phalaborwa. They were arrested in April last year in connection with the vandalising of the tombstone of former South African ambassador to Indonesia, Norman Mashabane, in Phalaborwa.

The second state witness, Phillip Potgieter, is still to testify in the trial that is set to end on May 20.

The three accused allegedly planned to bomb the homes of ANC leaders, buses transporting blacks and plant bombs in townships.

They face multiple charges ranging from conspiracy, engaging in terrorist activities, illegal manufacture and possession of explosives, to illegal possession of firearms and ammunition.

Kiratzidis, in whose house seven explosives were found, is out on extended bail of R100000 while Vorster and Louw were granted bail of R80000 each.

Limpopo police spokesperson Brigadier Hangwani Mulaudzi said all three had surrendered their passports and that they were also reporting at the Phalaborwa police station weekly.

Kiratzidis admitted yesterday that seven pipe bombs were found in his house.

Yesterday's proceedings were also attended by Mopani ANC regional chairperson, Joshua Matlou, who is also executive mayor of the Mopani district municipality, and BaPhalaborwa municipality mayor, Gloria Mudunungu.

Earlier, a group of residents marched to submit a memorandum that called on the judiciary to defend the "hard-earned" democracy by ensuring a sentence equivalent to the crime perpetrated.

A sixth person initially charged with the accused appeared separately in court last year.

Francois de Vos, 35, pleaded guilty in October to vandalising the grave of Mashabane.

He was sentenced to one year in prison or a R2000 fine.

Charges against the seventh man, Andre Stroh, 24, were withdrawn.

Stroh had pleaded guilty in September to a charge of possession of ammunition. He was sentenced to three years imprisonment suspended for five years.

The trial continues.