The case against the two men has been postponed to September
The Nelspruit magistrate’s court has postponed the matter against alleged rhino-horn kingpin Johannes Groenewald, 53, and professional big game hunter Schalk Steyn,48, to 17 September after both were granted bail of R50 000 each on Friday.
The duo appeared in court after being arrested on Wednesday while allegedly transporting 19 rhino horns in two vehicles. They were charged with the illegal possession and selling of the horns, valued at R2.6-million During their first appearance on Thursday, the matter was ruled to fall under the ambit of schedule 5 offences.
Schedule 5 offences include among others, treason, murder, corrupt activity involving amounts of more than R500 000 for an individual and R100 000 if it is alleged that the offence was committed by a person, group of persons or syndicate acting in common purpose or conspiracy. If convicted, a first offender under schedule 5 can face a minimum of 15 years imprisonment.
Following consultation between the defence and the investigating officer, the court ruled that the accused could submit their affidavits at the police station “due to the difficult situation that we all find ourselves under,” National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson in Mpumalanga province, Monica Nyuswa told theThe state did not oppose bail but asked that it be granted with certain conditions, including the accused submitting their passports to the police, reporting once a week at their...
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