S v Gasa and Others

• Jurisdiction: South Africa
• Judge: Howard JP
• Judgment Date: 17 March 1997
• Citation: 1998 (1) SACR 446 (D)
• Hearing Date: 17 March 1997
• Court: Durban and Coast Local Division

Howard JP:

A trial-within-a-trial has been held to determine the admissibility of a C pointing-out by accused No 1 and statements made by accused No 2 to a commissioned police officer, and by accused No 3 to a magistrate.

Accused No 1 disputed the admissibility of the pointing-out and accused Nos 2 and 3 D disputed the admissibility of their statements on the basis that they were not done or made freely and voluntarily, but had been induced by assaults committed by the police.

Without going into any detail at this stage, the Court rejects the evidence of assaults and finds it proved beyond reasonable doubt that accused No 1 pointed out the scene of the crimes, and accused Nos 2 and 3 made their statements freely and voluntarily and without having been E unduly influenced thereto.

In particular, we reject the preposterous evidence of accused No 2, that Superintendent Havenga did not take any statement from him. That exh E, and the statement which F accompanied it, were concocted by Havenga without reference to him, and the two black policemen then forced him to sign and place his thumbprint on each page of the document.

We likewise reject the patently absurd evidence of accused No 3 that the police concocted the largely exculpatory...