26 Jul 2019

Ms Tshepo Thedi of the Broadhurst Magistrate Court, today, suspended a warrant of arrest she issued against former Directorate of Intelligence and Security Services (DIS) director general, Isaac Kgosi.

This followed an application by Kgosi’s legal team, Mr Unoda Mack and Mr Thabiso Tafila, challenging the warrant of arrest that they said was improperly issued.

Ms Thedi determined that the state should make a response to the challenge by the applicants on Monday (July 29) and a hearing should take place on Wednesday (July 31) for both sides to present arguments and a determination to be made whether to retain the warrant or revoke it.

Representing the state, Attorney Boikobo Moseki of the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP) said the state was against the suspension or revoking of the warrant.

He said the defence had made them aware that there had been a scan conducted on Kgosi owing to a lower back pain and the matter had been referred for “management” in Malaysia, but by staying outside the country since May 28, he had not observed his bail conditions, which included regularly reporting to the Broadhurst police station.

Mr Moseki said communication was made by Kgosi’s legal team with the DPP and not the police as stipulated in the bail conditions.

On one hand, Mr Tafila said the warrant of arrest had been issued based on Kgosi’s absence on the country since crossing the Ramotswa border gate on May 28, but the act of leaving the country had not broken any rule since he had not been considered a flight risk and crossing a border had not been a bail condition.

Mr Mack explained that Kgosi was referred by his doctor in Botswana to Malaysia and upon arrival in the Asian state, he was advised by a specialist to stay longer and eventually have surgery, which the court heard was conducted yesterday (July 25).

Upon receiving information from their client, Mr Mack said the Kgosi defence team wrote two correspondences updating the state on the condition of their client. 

He said the application for the warrant of arrest was made on Sunday, July 21 by the state, without the side of the defence being placed before the court.

He thus asked for the suspension of Mr Kgosi’s warrant of arrest pending a hearing of their application for it to be revoked, which Magistrate Thedi granted. Ends