Mogotsi’s bail hearing postponed, again

Added: 2026-05-26

[00:00:00]town. They'll be back in the Johannesburg magistrate's quarter on Thursday.

[00:00:07]Security cluster ministers are meeting in Ptoria today to discuss a response plan to growing tensions over illegal immigration.

[00:00:20]And National Assembly Speaker Togoiza is today expected to announce the names of the 30 members who will form part of the impeachment committee.

[00:00:41]It's just 3:00. Welcome to this Monday edition of Newsfeed PM. My name is Vuan Pogo. Thank you for joining us. The case against ballistic expert Lawrence Makotree has been postponed to the 2nd of June for a formal bail application.

[00:00:59]Makotra appeared briefly in the Ptoria magistrate's court today on charges of defeating the ends of justice. He was arrested by the commission's recommendations task team at his home in Ptoria on Friday. His arrest follows several others linked to investigations stemming from the Madanga Commission of Inquiry. Police say he allegedly interfered with several high-profile meta investigations currently under scrutiny as well as evidence presented before the commission. Authorities also seized ballistic reports, ammunition, and other evidence linked to the cases.

[00:01:38]Meanwhile, police spokesperson Atlanta Mate says Makutre's arrest emanates from the murder of Fenhang engineer Arman among others. Mate says the ballistic expert report signed by Makotra was later found to be linked to 30 cases.

[00:01:56]Those firearms were then taken to Eastern Cape H forensic science laboratory where the two reviewers and the ballistics experts then agreed that indeed these firearms uh linked to 30 serious and violent cases, the majority being murder and attempted murder. So it then gave the investigation investigators an indication that the initial report that was worked on by Captain Mortre.

[00:02:28]It it had glaring mistakes and a lot of errors and it is it is unusual with the experience of Captain Mortre that he would make such glaring mistakes and would not link these firearms uh to other cases. Now we know that those three firearms were linked to firstly the Aman case. They were linked to DJ somebody and his two bodyguards case. Uh the Dawn Ding Lenny murder. H they were linked to um DJ Vindo's murder. When it comes to attempted murder, we link those firearms to the attempted murder of Joseph Boni, the attempted murder of um I think it was DJ Vetis and and so on.

[00:03:14]our team is still in in investigating and linking um other cases. Um it's highly likely that they'll bring other cases uh before court. So um in in the you know value chain a ballistic expert uh plays a very crucial role. When a ballistic expert h fails to provide uh true and accurate forensic findings, it derails investigations, you know. Um so misrepresentation and failing to correctly analyze exhibits. It leads investigators to being misled. It compromises investigations and it means perpetrators then evade justice. So it's a very serious crime and that is why h is facing about three charges. the defeating of uh the Ends of Justice Accessory after the fact because we do believe that um by him by him misrepresenting uh the report and um manipulating the report then he should together with those suspects or the accused be charged then with the murders of Aman.

[00:04:32]Meanwhile, Mart says work is underway to reenroll the extortion and money laundering case against taxi boss Joe Signoni and his three co-acused. The Guava magistrate's court struck the matter off the role last week after the state prosecutor failed to appear for the bail application. Saboni and his co-acused are accused of forcing a Bumalanga businessman to pay more than 2.2 2 million rand in alleged protection fees while threatening to shut down his operations if he refused.

[00:05:09]Bumalanga police had indicated that they still believe that they've got a strong case against the four accused. uh they still maintain that the evidence that they've h gathered remains intact and they are working closely obviously with the NPA to ensure that that matter is reenrolled and the four accused then are brought before court to answer to the charges that they will be that they are facing.

[00:05:37]>> The bail hearing of self-proclaimed Anacava agent Brown Modi has once again been postponed. Mahuds was arrested two weeks ago for allegedly staging an assassination attempt on himself in Force Loras last November. He's facing five charges including pergery, discharging a weapon in public and defeating the ends of justice. News from Africa's senior politics reporter Zando has been attending proceedings and joins us now live. Good afternoon Zandanda.

[00:06:07]And yet another postponement. the reason this time >> same reason as last week interestingly which is the issue around verifying his address. So today we at least got to hear um you know his affidavit and the details therein and he and Brown Mortzy uh you know speaks about how the address that he sent is on a tri was on tribal land. the investigating officer could have easily confirmed this, but also that WhatsApp exchanges will prove that he had actually shared the location for where he was. But a completely different picture emerging from the investigating officers um affidavit in in so far as how many times they literally tried to trace and track down Mahonyi. I mean in at one stage the investigating officer drove all the way to the northwest waited two hours brown Mahorti was a no-show in another instance when he was trying to meet up with Mahorti to finalize the warning statements he said he's not in the province he's in Impumalanga with his traditional healer so all these sorts of stories really um you know stacked up against Brown Mahori in so far as him not going to be available if he were to be granted bail but he's also Aloh given detail about his past uh convictions, but again the investigating officer pointing out that there were some that he did not actually point out and that actually triggered uh you know Mahorti requesting to uh submit a supplementary affidavit. But I just want to listen you to listen into um you know his past convictions because we mustn't forget that he's facing schedule five offenses which is quite high bar.

[00:07:50]Yeah.

[00:07:52]I have three previous conditions, all of which are from the year 2012, which are as follows.

[00:07:59]In 2012, I pleaded guilty to two counts of assault with the intent to do business harm and was sentenced to two years direct imprisonment. I also pleaded guilty to one count of recklessness and negligent driving and sentenced to two years imprisonment. I was released on the 14th of October 2015 on parole. Since my release on parole, I have never been convicted of a similar offense while on parole. I have no ping cases against me. I submit that my prior convictions are dated, rehabilitative, and do not render me a present danger to to the society.

[00:08:38]>> And so those are the ones that he actually stated in his initial affidavit. But there were other offenses that were picked up by the state. And in his supplementary affidavit, he ultimately said that uh he didn't think it was necessary to include in his affidavit because uh there were actually fines. But then it got worse because the investigating officer basically says that Brown Mahorsey tried to bribe him to ensure that uh the state does not oppose bill. I just want you to listen into some excerpts from that affidavit.

[00:09:11]was about to lead to the applicant approach. He made a command relating to his words were open quote. Is there something that I can do for you not to oppose my very close?

[00:09:32]I immediately took offense as it was said to me in a context that I understand it to be an attempt to offer a bribe not to oppose Israel if there would be an opposing application.

[00:09:49]I told him immediately you must not even think of going to that.

[00:09:56]He then said to me that it is not what he mean it is not what he he he means he said openly quote if I would want information close this comment of him does not make any sense at the time I told him that there is no information that I need from him in relation any kind of >> so much around this man. What's with the faces though?

[00:10:34]>> It's anyone's guessing what that is all about. That's not going to help him in any event because this issue around the the address um is actually quite contentious. So much so that the matter has now been postponed to Thursday to allow for the state to go back now and verify this address again. but some interesting details as well about what happened on that day. So, um the states are saying that forensic evidence, the ballistics as CCTV footage and witnesses all confirm that that maroon Chevrolet was actually stationary when it was shot at and there were no occupants inside.

[00:11:12]So it flies in the face of what Brown Mahorti has claimed previously that he was followed um by a white van uh when he drove into Force Flores, but also other interesting details coming out like how he actually released and relieved his personal security on that day before going to Forsler. So a lot of questions around uh you know why he did that and of course this also ties in around the timeline when Brown Mahorti was supposed to appear before the Madanga Commission and this so-called assassination taking place just days before he was meant to appear before the Madanga Commission of Inquiry.

[00:11:51]>> So so so much so back in court on Thursday. Yeah.