Hijacker bail fraud outrage

The Justice Department has been urged to investigate how a dangerous crime suspect being held for hijacking three cars managed to slip out of jail using a fraudulent bail certificate. Police yesterday confirmed that a warrant of arrest has been issued for Innocent Phumlani Dlamini, 21, who, according to court records, was granted bail of R3 000 on December 22, 2009. However, Dlamini appeared in court on December 14, his case was adjourned for trial on January 22.

The Justice Department has been urged to investigate how a dangerous crime suspect being held for hijacking three cars managed to slip out of jail using a fraudulent bail certificate. One of his victims, says she has lost faith in the justice system."I was shocked. How could he have gotten bail when he had been remanded and was due to appear in court this week? My faith in the entire judicial system came crashing down after waiting almost a year to get a court date finalised."

A source has confirmed to the Sunday Tribune that the suspect appeared in U regional court on October 7 last year and again on December 14 when his trial was set down for January 20 to 22. He was remanded in custody at Westville Prison to stand trial on five counts of robbery with aggravating circumstances. However, according to the J7 form, which is the warrant of detention, the suspect was granted bail in U court on December 22. Warrants of detention are usually filled out by the court orderly, who is a police official. They are then signed by the magistrate. The source said the suspect should not have been called to court on December 22, and according to the charge sheet, he was not. The charge sheet does not reflect an appearance in any court on that day.

The source confirmed that the U court, where the suspect was allegedly granted bail, was closed for the day and the magistrate, Anand Maharaj, denies it is his signature on the form. Dianne Kohler Barnard, MP and DA shadow minister of police, said, "This country's criminal justice system is almost beyond repair. At the root of much of the problem is corruption shown, for example, by the continuous increase in missing police case dockets, the number of which has increased every year since 2003, and totals more than 2 500 since then. "By all accounts this man is a serial criminal, yet he played the system like a maestro. Good cops put their lives on the line apprehending suspected criminals like this, and for him to be out on the streets again is unconscionable. "Yet it's their colleagues and the officials they work with on a daily basis who have allowed him to stroll out."

Justice spokesman Tlali Tlali said officials would investigate to establish if this was "an isolated incident or a phenomenon". KwaZulu-Natal's state attorney Krish Govender said it would be wrong to assume that forged bail applications were a trend, but said the matter deserved urgent investigation. "This is the first time I am hearing of such a case in KZN. I'm sure the Department of Justice will pursue this matter with vigour."

Source: IoL