By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Magudumana appeared in the Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday.
She is accused of helping convicted murderer and rapist Thabo Bester escape from a Bloemfontein prison in May 2022.
During court the court proceedings on Wednesday, Magudumana’s lawyer Frans Dlamini said the state is falsely claiming that she evaded police for 11 months.
“The state said that Magudumuna evaded the police for 11 months but how was she supposed to know that the police were looking for her when there was no warrant of arrest.
“The applicant is honest in her affidavidit. She tells the court the exact day when she was taken out of the country. She does not hide it away. It was on the 17th of March,” said Dlamini.
State prosecutor Sello Matlhoko, representing the state in the bail application of Magudumana at Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court, said the suspect has no respect for the law.
He said if released on bail there is a likelihood that the suspended doctor could evade trial or interfere with state witnesses. Magudumana faces a string of charges which include fraud, corruption, aiding, and abetting Bester to escape from lawful custody, and violating a corpse.
Where Schedule 5 or 6 is applicable the onus is on the applicant. Different requirements between schedules 5 and 6 must be met by the applicant before bail is granted. In Schedule 5 offences, the bail applicant must satisfy the court that the interests of justice permit his or her release. Despite the lengthy jail term sought by the state against her, it has been further indicated to the court that six civil lawsuits of fraud were registered against her.
Monies involved in these cases range from R15 million, R5.112 million, R1.2 million, R900 000, R500 000, and R150 000. She fraudulently claimed at least two bodies from the state mortuary in Bloemfontein, including that of Katlego Bereng, which was used as a decoy for Bester to escape from G4S in May 2022.
These bodies were fraudulently claimed and fake funerals were held in Phase 2 Bloemfontein. The police found bags of rotten meat and flour inside the one casket upon examination. She allegedly is the mastermind of the Bester escape.
A state witness in his affidavit said Magudumana fetched Bester from KwaZulu-Natal after he made a daring escape from the Mangaung Correctional Centre.
She and Bester rented a place where they made renovations and also had security personnel. Later on, Magudumana and Bester fled the country via Zimbabwe and were arrested in Arusha, Tanzania, in transit to Kenya. They were then brought back to the country in April 2023 where she appeared at the Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court and was remanded in custody. Bester was then transferred to the Kgosi Mampuru Maximum Centre in Pretoria.
The two appeared together in court on 8 August for the first time since their arrest. They appeared in good spirits. However fast forward from that court appearance, Magudumana has told the could that Bester threatened, forced, and pressured her into the car. She is among 12 suspects arrested for aiding Bester to escape from the Mangaung Correctional Centre in May 2022.
Nine suspects, including accused 1, Senohe Matsoara, are out on R10 000 bail. It is only Magudumana, Bester, and an illegal immigrant from Zimbabwe Zando Moyo who remain in custody.
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