Cape Town - The legal team for alleged underworld kingpin Jerome “Donkie” Booysen is set to approach the Acting Judge President at the Western Cape High Court amid ongoing issues with getting his trials off the ground.
A visibly annoyed Booysen was spotted in the dock yesterday as it was revealed that after more than two years of delays, a trial date had only been set for April next year.
Booysen appeared alongside Kenneth Hansen, Kristo Mariens, Clinton Langeveld, Jennen Jansen and Herbert Zoutman as they face a string of drug-dealing charges.
The alleged leader of the Sexy Boys gang in Belhar had just recently celebrated his 60th birthday where relatives could be seen throwing money at him as he danced on the dance floor.
The group was busted several years ago by the Hawks amid interception of calls relating to alleged drug drops. They face over 90 charges, which include drug trafficking and charges under the Prevention of Organised Crime Act (POCA).
According to the charge sheet, they allegedly ran the “Jerome Booysen Enterprise” between February 2013 and November 2017, and court documents lists three properties in Durbanville and Bellville, where it alleges the Mandrax was smuggled from, as well as more than 90 properties in Kasselsvlei, Bellville and Glenhaven, where it was believed the Mandrax was taken to.
Standing in the dock, Booysen seemed annoyed when prosecutor Blaine Lazarus asked for the matter to be postponed to next year.
This request comes amid another trial, where Booysen is expected to appear in the same court, next year, alongside alleged underworld kingpin Mark Lifman, and others, on a plethora of charges, including murder.
As Booysen cannot appear at two trials simultaneously, it is understood that his legal team
will now make a special application to have the drug-dealing case struck off the court roll until the other matter is concluded.
During an appearance in September last year for the same case, Judge Robert Henney called on the State to drop one of the cases while the other trial runs, but this was refused.
Addressing the court yesterday, defence advocate Nthabiseng highlighted her frustrations with the ongoing delays and said she would write to the judge president for the special application. She said the trial was set to start on October 2 last year, but had again been delayed due to the unavailability of two legal reps.
“The accused in this matter has a pending matter, and this matter cannot commence until the other is finalised. Now, this is the conundrum in which we find ourselves as the state and the defence.
“Now, Judge Henney advised that if we want to bring an application in terms of 342A, we write to the Judge President. He has been coming to court on a number of occasions, since 2021, and this matter has not started.”
It is understood the court issued new directives last year barring this practice where one person is set to stand trial on two separate matters simultaneously.
The case was postponed to May 24.
The same issues arose with the trials faced by another alleged underworld kingpin, Nafiz Modack, who was also set to stand trial on two matters. One of his cases have since been put on hold until the first trial is completed.