Former Criminal Intelligence (CI) chief Richard Mdluli, accused of looting the police slush fund, will have to seek legal aid after his lawyer withdrew from the case due to lack of funds.

Mdluli and his co-accused, former SAPS supply chain manager Heine Barnard and former State Security Agency (SSA) chief financial officer Solomon Lazarus, made a brief appearance in the High Court in Pretoria, where the trial was due to begin Monday.

Adjournment

Mdluli’s lawyer, Ike Motloung, asked the court to adjourn the trial pending permission to appeal a ruling that rejected the former crime chief’s review of a police decision not to fund his defence.

Investigation Directorate Against Corruption (IDAC) spokesman Henry Mamothame said the Pretoria High Court had rejected Mdluli’s request for an adjournment.

“His application for leave to appeal is because the South African Police Service (SAPS) has refused to pay his legal fees.

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“In dismissing Mdluli’s application, Justice Mudunwazi Makamu agreed with IDAC and pointed out that this matter has been pending before the court for a long time and that it prejudices the other two accused who have put it on record that they are ready to go to trial “. Mamothame said.

Uncertainties

Mamothame said Makamu had also indicated that Mdluli’s leave to appeal had uncertainties that could require him to go to the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) and the Constitutional Court if the decision was not in his favour.

“The judge adjourned the matter to Tuesday 5 November 2024 for Mdluli to approach Legal Aid South Africa to determine whether he qualifies for legal aid.”

Taxes

Mdluli, Barnard and Lazarus face charges of corruption, fraud and theft related to the secret police fund since they were employed by the SAPS in crime intelligence between 2008 and 2012.

These include payments for private trips to China and Singapore, private use of witness shelters, conversion of property for personal use and renting of Mdluli’s private residence to the state to pay his bond, among other charges.

Mdluli was sentenced to five years in prison for his September 2020 conviction in connection with the kidnapping and assault of Oupa Ramogibe in 1999. He was released on parole in July 2022 after serving a third of his sentence.

READ ALSO: Richard Mdluli released on parole, placed in community service