The Randburg Magistrate's Court has postponed the bail application of controversial celebrity troller Musa Khawula. Khawula appeared briefly in court, where the state cited that they were ready to proceed with a bail hearing, but his defence needed time to obtain outstanding documents.

OUTSTANDING DOCUMENTS

Khawula is currently facing charges of crimen injuria as well as contempt of court. According to the National Prosecuting Authority, Khawula is alleged to have posted derogatory statements between 10 and 12 October 2024 on his social media platform about businessman Ze Nxumalo. His defence lawyer, Ofentse Nkgwang, told the court that they were missing some documents and not ready to proceed. "Your worship, I can confirm appearance on behalf of the accused; however, we are not in a position to proceed because there is certain information that we need that is outstanding. We have tasked a family member to assist us in obtaining the information. Therefore, we ask that the matter be remanded in this regard."

CASE POSTPONED

Addressing the media after proceedings, the NPA's Phindi Mjonondwane confirmed that the matter was set down for a formal bail application hearing. "Unfortunately, Musa Khawula's defence indicated that they are not in a position to proceed with the application today, so the matter has been postponed to 29 January for the accused to bring his application," Mjonondwane said.

HE HAS OTHER PENDING CASES

She added that Khawula has two pending cases, a murder case in the Western Cape and a reckless and negligent driving case in Fochville, west of Johannesburg. "On the Fochville matter, he is currently in custody as per the warrant of arrest that was issued in October 2024. However, the Sandton SAPS was able to execute their warrant of arrest on this matter before Fochville could," she said. "The South African Police Service has since been trying to track the accused up until he was apprehended in KwaZulu-Natal and brought to court," Mjonondwane said. Despite Khawula facing an array of charges in separate matters, Mjonondwane said nothing prohibits him from bringing a bail application on this particular matter. "As the state, we get an opportunity to raise and bring forth evidence in terms of the pending cases that we have against him. At the end of the day, the decision lies with the court to determine whether he is a suitable candidate to be released on bail."