Court hears Magudumana was extradited, not deported
The legal representative of Dr Nandipha Magudumana has told the High Court in Bloemfontein that the celebrity doctor was extradited, and not deported, back to South Africa from Tanzania.
The court heard arguments in the application by Magudumana to have her arrest and deportation from Tanzania declared unlawful.
Magudumana was arrested in Arusha in April, alongside prison escapee Thabo Bester, where authorities suspect the couple were heading for the border between Tanzania and Kenya.
Her legal representative, Advocate Anton Katz, told the court that Magudumana’s deportation was disguised as an extradition.
“This was an extradition disguised as a deportation. There was collusion between South Africa and Tanzanian officials. They say it was an agreement between them.
"South Africa will decide whether to send an extradition request, depending on what Tanzanians tell us and if the Tanzanians tell us that we’ll hand over her without extradition. If they say we've got to bring an extradition request, we bring an extradition request.”
Advocate Neil Snellenburg, representing the South African Police Service and the National Prosecuting Authority, said Magudumana had not yet met the requirements to bring an urgent application.
“The applicant had more than enough time to bring this application and hasn't told the court why this matter is urgent. This is an abuse of process.
“Also, the applicant didn’t mention in her founding affidavit that she had told officials that she wanted to go home because she's a mother. At no time at all did the applicant object to getting on the plane that supports that she wanted to come home to her children."
