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no love lost as families feel the pain

20091020 BMA Selebi's brother leaving at the South Gauteng high court, Johannesburg. PIC: BAFANA MAHLANGU. 20/10/2009. © SOWETAN
20091020 BMA Selebi's brother leaving at the South Gauteng high court, Johannesburg. PIC: BAFANA MAHLANGU. 20/10/2009. © SOWETAN

SINCE the first day of the trial George Selebi has been sitting quietly behind his brother, nodding his head in agreement or shaking it when he is not satisfied.

SINCE the first day of the trial George Selebi has been sitting quietly behind his brother, nodding his head in agreement or shaking it when he is not satisfied.

It is not clear whether Selebi had some kind of relationship with or had even met Glen Agliotti - the man trying to put his brother Jackie in jail.

He has worn an expression of disbelief at the allegations the man has made against his brother.

An experienced unionist who was once president of the South African Society of Bank Officials, Selebi is always accompanied by his wife Italiya, Jackie's wife Anne and an elderly cousin Iva.

The family avoids any interaction with the media and have avoided drawing attention to themselves by not walking in and out of the court with the former police commissioner.

Court 4B in the Johannesburg high court has reserved a bench normally used by members of the media just for the Selebi family.

Jackie's wife, who only appeared at her husband's side a few days after the trial resumed, has avoided eye contact with Agliotti, the man she allegedly once dined with and received expensive bags from.

The body language of the Selebi and Agliotti entourages shows that there is no love lost between them.

Agliotti has, on most occasions, used the second door to leave the courtroom so that he would not walk past the dock or the family bench.

His entourage includes NPA personnel and investigators. There is no sign of Dianne Muller, his fiancée, whose business boardroom he had allegedly used for shady dealings, possibly because she is also a state witness in the trial.

Agliotti's has done a great job keeping his former wife Vivian and their 19-year-old daughter out of the limelight.

The family has never been seen in court.

The Selebis and Agliottis were once close family friends. That was before Selebi was charged with corruption and defeating the ends of justice, and before Agliotti decided to testify against him and become the state's star witness.

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