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Ninth suspect in Thabo Bester escape case appears in court

The ninth suspect arrested in connection with Thabo Bester's prison escape made a brief appearance in the Bloemfontein magistrate's court on Tuesday.

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High court dismisses Thabo Bester's urgent bid to be transferred from eBongweni prison in Kokstad.
Thabo Bester has also asked the court to declare that the contents of the documentary violated his constitutional rights to be presumed innocent until proven guilty, to a fair trial and to dignity. High court dismisses Thabo Bester's urgent bid to be transferred from eBongweni prison in Kokstad. Picture: Thapelo Morebudi

The ninth suspect arrested in connection with Thabo Bester's prison escape made a brief appearance in the Bloemfontein magistrate's court on Tuesday. 

Zimbabwean national Zanda Moyo, 31, appeared in court without a lawyer.

He was formally joined as an accused in the case in which Bester's girlfriend Nandipha Magudumana, her father Zolile Sekeleni and five individuals who worked at the Mangaung correctional centre are charged.

The group is accused of having played a role in Bester's brazen escape from prison in May last year. 

Asked whether he will appoint his own attorney or use legal aid, Moyo told magistrate Motlholo Khabisi he still needs to consult with his family. 

His case has been postponed to June 20, when he will appear with the other accused, and possibly apply for bail.

The state prosecutor asked for a postponement to allow the state to verify his information for the bail application.

Moyo was arrested on Sunday in Johannesburg. He is facing charges of aiding and abetting a convict, fraud, violation of a corpse and harbouring an escaped convict. 

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