“All of a sudden, a gentleman purported to be Thabo Bester was brought to court. There is nothing except for a purported death certificate and a J88 that proves that the accused is Thabo Bester. This purported death certificate is purported to have a home affairs stamp.
“If we want to satisfy ourselves, we should wait until such time it has been proved by home affairs that the person before court is who the state says [it is]. We want the state to prove that the person before the court is Thabo Bester,” Pela said.
Magistrate Motlholo Khabisi, however, dismissed Pela's arguments.
“Why should the court believe that the wrong person was brought to court?” Khabisi questioned the defence.
Pela, however, maintained that when the court previously doubted the identity of Bester's girlfriend, Nandipha Magudumana, it ordered that she remove her hoodie and masks. He then maintained that, on those grounds, the same principles should be applied. The magistrate told him his argument was misplaced.
Earlier, Pela told the court that he was not happy with the virtual appearance, as it made it difficult for him to consult Bester. Pela made an application to the court to order the state to bring Bester to Bloemfontein on Wednesday so the defence team could consult him.
However, the state opposed the application, saying it was not the state's responsibility to transport the accused for consultations with his legal team. Prosecutor Sello Mahloko told Pela that if he wanted to consult his client, he was welcome to do so at Kgosi Mampuru. Mahloko maintained that the Criminal Procedure Act provided for virtual appearances.
The magistrate agreed and dismissed the application.
TimesLIVE previously reported that home affairs minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi confirmed the identity of Bester but said there was no record of him at the department and he “simply doesn't exist” on their database.
Police commissioner Lt-Gen Fannie Masemola said Bester had no South African ID but said police were able to confirm his identity through his fingerprints and criminal record.
Motsoaledi confirmed this, as he provided Bester's family history from birth up to his initial arrest in 2011.
The minister said the convict was born in June 1986 at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital as Thabo Bester to Meisie Maria Bester. He is the oldest of four children.
“[Bester's] mother was never registered when she was born [in 1965]. In other words, she had no birth certificate, no ID when she was 37 in 2002. In 2002, her mother passed on and her aunt decided to take Bester's mother for registration. In other words, they did a late registration of birth.”
Motsoaledi said she took on her aunt's surname and not the one she used when she gave birth to Bester.
“She then decided there that 'since I'm registered', let me register my children also and she registered them under the same surname of the aunt. All the three children registered suddenly became Mabaso, no longer Bester. They got their birth certificates, they got their IDs.”
She explained that she couldn't register Bester because he had disappeared at that stage.
Tracing his childhood, Motsoaledi confirmed Bester registered for school in 1997 and completed grade 5. His mother maintained Bester completed only grade 3, then known as standard 1.
The case against Bester and his co-accused has been postponed to June 20 for further investigation.
TimesLIVE
LISTEN | Bester's lawyer argues that the court is not sure if it has the right person
Image: Thapelo Morebudi
Thabo Bester's legal representative, Tsoeunyane Pela, on Tuesday brought an argument regarding Bester's identity.
Bester appeared virtually in the Bloemfontein magistrate's court from Kgosi Mampuru Correctional Facility in Pretoria, where he is being held.
Pela told the court nothing had been placed on record that ascertained the identity of Bester. He told the court that there was a warrant of arrest for Bester, issued by the same court, which has since been cancelled.
Listen:
“All of a sudden, a gentleman purported to be Thabo Bester was brought to court. There is nothing except for a purported death certificate and a J88 that proves that the accused is Thabo Bester. This purported death certificate is purported to have a home affairs stamp.
“If we want to satisfy ourselves, we should wait until such time it has been proved by home affairs that the person before court is who the state says [it is]. We want the state to prove that the person before the court is Thabo Bester,” Pela said.
Magistrate Motlholo Khabisi, however, dismissed Pela's arguments.
“Why should the court believe that the wrong person was brought to court?” Khabisi questioned the defence.
Pela, however, maintained that when the court previously doubted the identity of Bester's girlfriend, Nandipha Magudumana, it ordered that she remove her hoodie and masks. He then maintained that, on those grounds, the same principles should be applied. The magistrate told him his argument was misplaced.
Earlier, Pela told the court that he was not happy with the virtual appearance, as it made it difficult for him to consult Bester. Pela made an application to the court to order the state to bring Bester to Bloemfontein on Wednesday so the defence team could consult him.
However, the state opposed the application, saying it was not the state's responsibility to transport the accused for consultations with his legal team. Prosecutor Sello Mahloko told Pela that if he wanted to consult his client, he was welcome to do so at Kgosi Mampuru. Mahloko maintained that the Criminal Procedure Act provided for virtual appearances.
The magistrate agreed and dismissed the application.
TimesLIVE previously reported that home affairs minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi confirmed the identity of Bester but said there was no record of him at the department and he “simply doesn't exist” on their database.
Police commissioner Lt-Gen Fannie Masemola said Bester had no South African ID but said police were able to confirm his identity through his fingerprints and criminal record.
Motsoaledi confirmed this, as he provided Bester's family history from birth up to his initial arrest in 2011.
The minister said the convict was born in June 1986 at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital as Thabo Bester to Meisie Maria Bester. He is the oldest of four children.
“[Bester's] mother was never registered when she was born [in 1965]. In other words, she had no birth certificate, no ID when she was 37 in 2002. In 2002, her mother passed on and her aunt decided to take Bester's mother for registration. In other words, they did a late registration of birth.”
Motsoaledi said she took on her aunt's surname and not the one she used when she gave birth to Bester.
“She then decided there that 'since I'm registered', let me register my children also and she registered them under the same surname of the aunt. All the three children registered suddenly became Mabaso, no longer Bester. They got their birth certificates, they got their IDs.”
She explained that she couldn't register Bester because he had disappeared at that stage.
Tracing his childhood, Motsoaledi confirmed Bester registered for school in 1997 and completed grade 5. His mother maintained Bester completed only grade 3, then known as standard 1.
The case against Bester and his co-accused has been postponed to June 20 for further investigation.
TimesLIVE
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