MBABANE – The trial of the lawyer, who is accused of sexually violating his children, cousin and helper, is expected to resume today.
The lawyer’s fate will be determined by Judge Sabelo Masuku and the Crown will parade a number of witnesses in an endeavour to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt against the lawyer. His application for bail was dismissed by Judge Zonke Magagula in October 2022. The lawyer, whose identity will not be revealed to protect the children, subsequently filed an appeal against Judge Magagula’s decision to dismiss his application for bail. One of the reasons for dismissing his application was that he knew the complainants in the matter and was likely to interfere with them.
Meanwhile, the Department of Social Welfare was granted an order by the Mbabane Magistrates Court for the removal of the lawyer’s four-year-old daughter and another from his homestead. The department had filed the application after making an assessment of the living conditions at the lawyer’s homestead and the court granted the order that the children be removed to a place of safety. The four-year-old child and another, who is aged 17 years, were removed from the homestead of the lawyer, as per the order. The involvement of Social Welfare officers in the matter regarding another minor who was allegedly sexually violated by lawyer, was at the instance of a prosecutor who was related to the child.
