It took only two months for controversial former advocate Malesela Teffo to make it big in prison. ZiMoja is in possession of a photo of Teffo with fellow inmates in jail in prison while awaiting trial. A source said Teffo is a lecturer behind bars. Teffo previously represented four accused in the Senzo Meyiwa trial. He was banned from attending the Meyiwa trial in May for trying to bring an application besides being disbarred.
According to a source, Teffo has been teaching law to fellow inmates. "When he speaks, everyone is listens to him. He taught inmates about their rights and the law in general. Some inmates who swear that they were framed and serving unjust sentences, have decided that they will write to the Minister of Justice to have their cases redone after they consulted with him," said a source.
The source added that his relative has made friends with Advocate Teffo and that he has influenced him so much that he wants to enrol for a law degree. "My cousin had given up in life but Advocate Teffo brought hope to him to become a lawyer as well," said the relative. Another source close to the situation says Teffo seems happy and content while waiting for his fate to be decided. "He made friends and gets along with guys, they all like him and are star struck," adds the source.
Advocate Teffo was arrested on 1 August this year and charged with fraud, assault, malicious damage to property and trespassing. Teffo is accused of entering the premises he was previously renting at the Protea Towers, which he was barred from entering in April. It's alleged that he entered the building without permission in July with a person from locksmith and broke into the offices. In another case, NPA spokesperson Lumka Mahanjana said Teffo faces a charge of fraud of R13 000, where he collected the money from a client and failed to give them legal assistance. The said client reported the matter to the legal Practice Council and they were informed that Teffo was no longer in practice,so they opened a criminal case against him.
Teffo, who is currently detained at the Kgoshi Mampuru, claims that he was unlawfully detained. Teffo refused to cooperate with the police and would not allow them to take his fingerprints for profiling so that he could be formally charged. The presiding magistrate made an order for the former advocate to cooperate and provide the state with the requested information, but he still failed. Recently, the Pretoria High Court found Teffo guilty of contempt of a strike-off order and he was sentenced to a suspended 12 months imprisonment. He was struck off the roll in September last year.
