Zandile Mafe

With everything in place, Zandile Mafe refused to appear in court on Friday – Photo: Storm Simpson / The South African

‘He is lying down’: Zandile Mafe case postponed in bizarre circumstances

A case that didn’t need any more twists or turns descended into farce on Friday, when Zandile Mafe was found ‘lying on the floor of his cell’.

Zandile Mafe

With everything in place, Zandile Mafe refused to appear in court on Friday – Photo: Storm Simpson / The South African

The pre-trial hearing for Zandile Mafe was a non-starter on Friday. This, after the detained terror suspect REFUSED to appear in court. Storm Simpson, our reporter at the scene, confirmed that Mafe was found ‘lying on the floor’, and would not leave the confines of his holding cell.

Why has the Zandile Mafe trial been postponed?

Zandile Christmas Mafe was expected to appear before the Cape Town High Court on Friday, 12 August, for a pre-trial conference. He is facing terrorism charges, related to the burning of Parliament at the start of the year, and has been in custody for the last seven months.

At his last appearance in the Cape Town Magistrate’s Court, Mafe was served with an indictment and summary of facts by the State after it finally completed its investigations and submitted outstanding reports.

Charges of housebreaking with intent to commit arson and theft were also added to his rap sheet. However, things took a bizarre turn this morning. On top of this act of non-compliance, we also learned that Mr. Mafe had actually been on a hunger strike, contributing to his poor health.

Zandile Mafe
The pre-trial hearing for Zandile Mafe never got going on Friday. The matter has now been pushed back by three weeks – Photo: Storm Simpson / The South African

Crossed wires? Suspect’s hunger strike ‘surprises’ his lawyer

Pollsmoor Prison officials, meanwhile, stand accused of failing to notify the court about these latest developments, as they had done previously. Luvuyo Godla, the lawyer representing Zandile Mafe, also says he was completely oblivious to the ongoing hunger strike.

The suspect, who has been behind bars since January, wasn’t even dressed for court. It would seem he never had any intention of leaving his cell, either. Godla revealed that Mafe was ‘still in his pyjamas’ when he was called to appear in the dock.

With so much chaos and apparent miscommunication, the court was left with no choice but to postpone the matter for a few weeks. Zandile Mafe’s hearing will now take place on Friday 2 September – where it is hoped proceedings will be conducted in a more orderly manner.