Publications
Partners
Jan-Spruyt Steenkamp, 32 - a Pretoria lawyer accused of cattle theft - will have to spend another seven nights behind bars in police cells in Ermelo after the case against him and others was postponed for further investigation.
His bail hearing is expected to continue in the Breyten Magistrate's Court in Mpumalanga on May 17.
Steenkamp and co-accused - Neels van der Walt, Lucas Magagula, Sibusiso Mabuse and Musi Mhlongo - were arrested earlier this week during a police sting operation.
They were allegedly caught red-handed trying to steal 334 cattle worth an estimated R3.1m near Breyten on Tuesday night.
It is alleged that the cattle had been stolen from a farmer near Hendrina.
Also read: Stock farmers prepare for Easter theft onslaught
When the police struck, they allegedly found about 120 heads of cattle loaded in three interlink trucks - one a double-decker bus. The rest of the animals were allegedly kept in a nearby kraal.
The police also confiscated a Toyota bakkie, which allegedly belongs to Steenkamp, a sedan and R95 000 in cash found in the bakkie.
Eleven other people were also arrested during the sting operation, Mpumalanga police spokesperson Brigadier Leonard Hlathi said.
Some were truck drivers and assistants.
According to Hlathi, the cases against some of the accused were temporarily withdrawn because they indicated that they would become State witnesses.
Magistrate Sarel Grabé denied the accused bail on Friday morning, saying he would postpone the case to May 17 for further investigation.
Investigators must, among other things, still verify the accused's home addresses and confiscate their passports.
