The Mpumalanga police and provincial Hawks are searching for a suspected fake attorney in Mpumalanga named Doctor Sobetha.
The 31-year-old Sobetha was arrested for allegedly practising as an unqualified attorney in March last year, after he represented his “client” in a murder case.
Sobetha represented 37-year-old Mhlabuyaxega Mntungwa for the 2019 murder of Emmanuel Ngcongo, a former manager at Sam Holdings.
Mntungwa, after a series of court appearances, was found guilty of murder and sentenced to 25 years imprisonment in 2020 at the Bethal Magistrate’s Court.
He was eventually arrested last year by the provincial tracking team in KwaZulu-Natal in February after a warrant of arrest was issued.
Mntungwa was charged and appeared before the Bethal Magistrate’s Court where he was remanded in custody and the case was postponed to March 24, 2023.
On the day of his court appearance, during the presentation of an affidavit for Mntungwa’s bail application, there were discrepancies that caught the court’s attention, thus, an investigation was conducted and it was discovered Sobetha did not have the qualifications to practise as an attorney.
Sobetha was arrested for practising without qualifications; both accused were remanded in custody and the case was postponed to March 27 last year.
During the appearance, Sobetha was granted R5 000 bail, while his co-accused remained in custody. The case was postponed to October 14 last year. For the next court appearance, Sobetha absconded. A warrant of arrest was authorised on February 24 this year for his arrest.
Major General Gerber, who is the provincial Head of Hawks, is pleading with members of the public to assist for any information regarding the whereabouts of Sobetha.
The Star