Modack lodges formal bail application as state’s case appears to falter

Cape Town – Controversial businessman and alleged underworld kingpin Nafiz Modack and his co-accused may be granted bail after the State failed to produce a certificate from the National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP).

An array of charges have been brought against Modack, Zane Kilian, Jacques Cronje, Ricardo Morgan, Janick Adonis, Amaal Jantjies and police officer Ashley Tabisher in the Blue Downs Regional Court.

According to the State’s indictment, the charges include murder, conspiracy to commit murder, attempted murder, racketeering, money laundering, intimidation, kidnapping, extortion, corruption, illegal cellphone tracking and contravening the Prevention of Organised Crime Act (Poca).

Adonis and Jantjies were not present at proceedings on Thursday and all the accused, except Morgan, formally applied for bail.

The State alleges that Modack ran an ’’enterprise’’ named Nafiz Modack Enterprise between October 2019 and September 2020.

The State also alleges that Modack and Kilian are behind the murder of top Anti-Gang Unit (AGU) detective Lieutenant-Colonel Charl Kinnear, who was assassinated in front of his Bishop Lavis home in September last year.

However, the State’s case appeared to be crumbling after prosecutors went on the record saying they did not have the certificate from the NDPP to charge the group on the Poca charges.

The defence counsel for Modack, advocate Dirk Uys, told the court that if there was no certificate from the NDPP, his client should then not be charged with counts relating to Poca.

Uys said the Pocacharges against his client were thus unauthorised.

Modack has been in custody since his arrest in April, and his defence counsel says he will eligible for bail if the Poca charges are removed from the charge sheet.

The rest of the group’s defence counsels concurred with Uys’s submissions.

However, State prosecutor advocate Greg Wolmarans shot back, saying that the charge sheet before the court was but a draft and charges could be removed or even added.

Wolmarans said there was nothing irregular, inappropriate or prejudicial and that the (certificate) was pending authorisation.

Uys asked the magistrate to scrap the Poca charges.

“If the charges are not before you (magistrate), there is a far lower threshold to show bail should [be granted] in the interest of justice.

Cronje’s defence counsel, advocate Piet Grobbelaar, agreed with his fellow counsel that the charges be scrapped.

“It is prejudicial that he (Cronje) should apply for bail on something not before the court,” Grobbelaar said.

The magistrate said he would deliver judgment on the matter pertaining to the Poca charges on June 29.

African News Agency (ANA)