NPA confident Dr Nandipha Magudumana’s extradition appeal won’t succeed
Although the judgment in Dr Nandipha Magudumana’s extradition appeal has been reserved, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) is confident that her application will be rejected, no matter which court she appeals to.
Magudumana’s case was heard in the Supreme Court of Appeal in Bloemfontein on Thursday, where she hoped the judges would rule in her favour.
She is challenging the reasons for her return to South Africa after her arrest with Thabo Bester in Tanzania in April 2023.
The two had fled to Tanzania after it was revealed that Bester had faked his death and escaped from the Mangaung Correctional Centre on May 3, 2022.
Magudumana argues that her deportation was actually an unlawful extradition.
In examining her claim, the five-judge panel noted that they had not seen any evidence that South African Police Services (SAPS) officers were involved in her arrest in Tanzania.
Advocate Mthunzi Mhaga, representing the NPA, explained that the deportation process was carried out properly and legally, including her arrest at Lanseria Airport.
Speaking to Newzroom Afrika, Mhaga said that the argument from Magudumana’s lawyer, Advocate Anton Katz SC, was weak, as the defence failed to convincingly show that SAPS played any role in the process.
He added that the NPA had carefully presented its case and was confident that the appeal would be dismissed.
Mhaga also hoped that a judgment would be reached before the end of 2024.
He further stated that even if Magudumana took her appeal to South Africa’s highest court, the Constitutional Court, he was certain her appeal would still be rejected.
Magudumana and Bester face charges including fraud, corruption, violating a body, and defeating the ends of justice.
They are charged alongside Magudumana’s father, Zolile Sekeleni, and others: Senohe Matsoara, Teboho Liphoko, Buti Masukela, Tieho Makhotsa, Zanda Moyo, and Joel Makhetha.
The trial is set to begin on February 10, 2025.
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