The release of a male suspect, already out on bail after being charged with attacking a National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) volunteer with a knife in Melkbosstrand recently, after he allegedly was found in possession of four bankies of tik has led to serious questions.
In a video posted on social media MP Nicholas Gotsell raised concerns about his release in Atlantis, saying he had several other cases pending, including assault, theft and drug possession. He said the suspect had previously been granted bail by the Atlantis Magistrates’ Court following the alleged knife attack on the NSRI volunteer. Godsell said the suspect did not have a fixed address, which he believed raised further questions about the decision to release him.
“Four bankies of tik and the NPA has released a known criminal in the Melkbosstrand community,” he said in the video.
He said the suspect had allegedly attempted to stab an NSRI volunteer a few weeks earlier and was subsequently granted bail.
Questions over pending cases
Gotsell said the suspect had previous arrests relating to drug possession, assault, assault with the intent to cause grievous bodily harm and theft.
He questioned why the suspect was released again despite the outstanding matters.“My question to the NPA is how do you release this guy when he has all these other pending matters against him?”
Gotsell said he had submitted parliamentary questions to the Minister of Justice and intended to monitor cases heard at the Atlantis Magistrates’ Court.
MP calls for greater scrutiny
According to Gotsell the case forms part of a broader concern about decisions to release suspects while other matters remained pending.
He said he would monitor court cases in Atlantis to establish why certain matters were allegedly not being investigated or prosecuted further.
“This is a common occurrence and we need to find out why the NPA thinks at these matters are not worth investigating.”
He also raised concerns about the impact of prosecutorial decisions on police investigations, arguing that cases could struggle to progress if investigators were not given sufficient time to build them.
“Because if they are not giving [the police] time to investigate these matters then we will never be able to put criminals behind bars.”
The circumstances surrounding the suspect’s latest arrest and release as well as the status of the pending cases, could not be confirmed at the time of publication.
The NPA’s Eric Ntabazalila, in response to TygerBurger’s media enquiry, said the authority could not comment on arrests or matters under investigation, noting that these fell within the police’s mandate.
He said the NPA would require confirmation that the suspect had been arrested and appeared in court, including details of the court where the appearance took place. A case number or the name of the suspect would also be needed to search for the relevant information on the NPA’s system.
