Murder accused Bafana Mahungela will appeal the court's decision to deny him bail. Mahungelwa is accused of the murder of Sandton teacher Kirsten Kluyts in October this year was denied bail by the Alexandra Magistrate Court on Friday. At the time of her murder, the 34-year-old teacher was 14 weeks pregnant after conceiving through IVF.

A DANGER TO SOCIETY

Judge Syta Prinsloo who is presiding over the matter said Mahungelwa was a danger to women and society. "The State objects to the granting bail to the applicant citing concerns that releasing him will jeopardise the safety of the women and the society. After thorough consideration, taking into account the applicant's version and the evidence tendered by the state, the court finds the applicant has not discharged the onus of proving any exceptional circumstances that would, in the interest of justice, permit his release on bail," Judge Prinsloo said.  

DEFENCE TO APPEAL BAIL JUDGEMENT

His legal representative Itumeleng Masako told the court that he plans to appeal the decision on an urgent basis. Kluyts was killed in October while participating in the MyRun race in Parkmore. Post-mortem results show that she was killed using an unknown blunt force object, strangled and had pressure applied to her neck. Her body was discovered by another participant on a path at George Lea Park (Sandton Sports Club) in Parkmore. Mahungela who is a student at Varsity College was placed at the scene by CCTV footage and he was arrested in November at his residence in Sandton. He was initially charged with murder but charges of robbery, rape and pre-meditated murder have been added. He has denied killing Kluyts. The case has been postponed to 19 January for further police investigation.