Three of the accused in the Thabo Bester prison escape matter have filed an application to appeal a decision by the Bloemfontein Magistrates Court to deny them bail. Former G4S employees Senohe Matsoara, Tebogo Lipholo, and Tieho Makhotsa were arrested in April after Bester and his lover Dr Nandipha Magudumana were arrested in Arusha, Tanzania.

BAIL APPLICATION DENIED

The trio who are facing various charges ranging from fraud, corruption, aiding and abetting a convict, arson, and defeating the ends of justice were denied bail in May. Their co-accused and G4S employee Anastassja Jansen and Magudumana's father Xolile Sekeleni were granted R10 000 bail each. Magudumana suspended her bail application. Judgment in their application has been reserved.

COURT APPEARANCE  

The three suspects will join seven other co-accused including Bester and Dr Nandipha Magudumana in court on August 8. They face various charges ranging from fraud, corruption, aiding and abetting a convict, arson, and defeating the ends of justice. Bester, together with his lover Magudumana returned to South Africa in April, after their arrest in Arusha, Tanzania. Bester escaped from the Mangaung Correctional Centre in the Free State, in May last year.