By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The Alexandra Magistrate’s Court has postponed controversial businessman Vusimuzi ‘Cat’ Matlala’s case to November 11 to allow the centralisation of two additional dockets.
Matlala was joined in court by his four co-accused, Musa Kekana, Tiego Floyd Mabusela, his wife Tsakani Matlala, and Mabusela’s daughter, Nthabiseng Nzama.
He faces charges of attempted murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and money laundering.
The charges relate to the 2023 shooting of his ex-girlfriend, actress and socialite Tebogo Thobejane, on the N1 highway near Sandton.
During court proceedings on Tuesday, the state requested the matter to be postponed to allow for the centralisation of two dockets received from Pretoria in which the accused are implicated.
Magistrates Renier Boshoff granted postponement for the centralisation of two additional dockets received from Pretoria and to facilitate the transfer of the case to the Johannesburg High Court.
Tsakani and Nzama are out on R20 000 and R10 000 bail, respectively.
Kekana, Mabusela and Matlala remain in police custody. Kekana and Mabusela abandoned their bail applications, while Matlala was denied bail last month in September.
NPA spokesperson in Gauteng Phindi Mjonondwana previously outlined the state’s plans to centralise the case, which mean the state combining the dockets.
“You will recall that on this matter there’s a Vereeniging case, as well as two cases from Pretoria,” she said.
“Now those cases fall under the jurisdiction of Pretoria, hence we saw the need to apply for centralisation and get approval from the office of the National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP).”
The NPA intends to streamline the prosecution process by handling them together, with a view to transferring the consolidated matter to the Johannesburg High Court.