Bester’s alleged accomplice Magudumana to appear in Bloem court
Dr Nandipha Magudumana is expected to make her first appearance in the Bloemfontein Magistrates Court on Thursday afternoon.
Her court appearance comes after she and Thabo Bester returned to South Africa on a charted flight in the early hours of this morning following their arrest in Tanzania last week.
Magudumana faces multiple charges related to the 2022 prison escape of her alleged lover, convicted serial rapist and murderer Thabo Bester.
In a joint press briefing by the correctional services department and the South African police, National Police Commissioner Fannie Masemola listed the charges against the medical doctor.
“The charges Magadumana will be facing, the aiding and abetting the escape, she will also be facing murder of a number of bodies that we did find had been in her possession, and also the violation of bodies. She will also be facing a fraud charge.”
Police Minister Bheki Cele says Magudumana cooperated with authorities in Tanzania and South Africa, but the same could not be said for Bester.
“We know that the good doctor cooperated with authorities on that side, but the ‘customary husband’ of the good doctor did not cooperate even from the other side.”
WATCH: National Police Commissioner Fannie Masemola lists the charges faced by #ThaboBester’s alleged accomplice Dr Nandipha Magudumana as she’s expected to appear in the Bloemfontein Magistrates Court this morning
— Jacaranda News (@JacaNews) April 13, 2023
📹:@LirandzuThemba https://t.co/faHgCLcjgC
A TOTAL OF FIVE PEOPLE LINKED TO THE BESTER ESCAPE SAGA ARRESTED
General Masemola confirmed a sixth person has been taken into custody but a decision on whether to arrest him is yet to be made.
The five people that have been arrested include Bester, Magudumana, and her father Cornelius Sekeleni. Two officials from the private company running the Mangaung Correctional facility in the Free State, have also been arrested.
“Here at home, we have three, and when you add Bester and Nandipha we have five. One person is still under questioning and is still being interviewed and a decision will be made on whether he gets arrested or not,” Masemola said.
On Wednesday night, police confirmed a 44-year-old IT technician linked to the CCTV tampering on the night Bester escaped from prison has been arrested.
North West police also took a 28-year-old man into custody after he was found to be in possession of a luxury vehicle, believed to be Dr Magudumana’s, in Lichtenburg.
