N1 assault case: State ready to prosecute Mashatile's bodyguards in 2024
The eight SAPS VIP Protection Unit officers were filmed in July beating up off-duty soldiers on the side of the N1 highway in Johannesburg, in Fourways.
JOHANNESBURG - The State’s protection team has completed its investigation into the assault case of the former protectors of Deputy President Paul Mashatile.
The eight South African Police Service VIP protection unit are charged with several counts of assault with intention to cause grievous bodily harm, damage to property, as well as the pointing of a firearm.
This relates to an incident in July when they were filmed assaulting off-duty soldiers on the side of N1 highway, in Fourways.
The men made a brief appearance at the Randburg Magistrates Court on Thursday.
For the first time since this case started, the eight accused appeared without wearing masks to cover their faces.
The magistrate had previously allowed the men to wear the masks because an identity parade had not been carried. It was subsequently conducted last month, meaning the officers don’t have to hide their identities anymore.
State prosecutor advocate Elize le Roux pronounced: “I can place on record that the investigation is now complete, and the state is in a position to propose a date for trial.”
Disclosure of evidence has been set down for the first week of January, while trial is expected to start from 6 May 2024.
The assault case of the 8 SAPS VIP Protection officers - former bodyguards of Dep President Paul Mashatile - returns to the Randburg Magistrate’s Court today.
' EWN Reporter (@ewnreporter) November 9, 2023
Unrelated, yesterday two people were gunned down outside this court including a witness in a police brutality case. TCG pic.twitter.com/b3SIjFeD26
