Fadiel fights back: NCC leader expected in KZN court
The leader of the National Coloured Congress (NCC) and MP, Fadiel Adams, is expected to appear in a KwaZulu-Natal court on Thursday, May 7.
Image: Photographer Ayanda Ndamane/ Independent Media
National Coloured Congress (NCC) party leader Fadiel Adams’s arrest has exploded into a full-blown legal showdown, with his lawyers claiming cops snubbed a High Court order during the arrest.
Adams, who is expected to appear in the Pinetown Magistrates Court in KwaZulu-Natal on Thursday, faces charges linked to fraud and defeating the ends of justice after he allegedly interfered with a convicted hitman linked to the murder of ANC Youth League leader Sindiso Magaqa.
The politician was arrested on Tuesday by members of the Political Killings Task Team after handing himself over at Parliament Village in Pelican Park.
Earlier that day, the Western Cape High Court stepped in urgently after Adams feared he was about to be arrested.
According to court papers, the court ordered that if police intended to arrest Adams, they had to hand over the J50 warrant (the official arrest document signed by a magistrate) as well as all the evidence used to obtain it, including sworn statements explaining the reasons for his arrest.
Cops were also given 24 hours to provide these documents, although they were allowed to redact sensitive details such as the identities of informants.
National police spokesperson, Athlenda Mathe, said officers were in possession of the J50 warrant for Adams’s arrest, saying: “SAPS is in possession of a J50 warrant of arrest for Mr Adams. The warrant relates to serious allegations that he interfered with ongoing investigations into the murder of the late ANC Youth League Leader, Mr Sindiso Magaqa.”
DEFENDING FADIEL: Attorney Bruce Hendricks.
Image: Supplied/Franky
But Adams’s lawyer, Bruce Hendricks, said that SAPS didn’t fully comply.
He said police handed over the arrest paper but not the full reasons behind it.
Hendricks said: “SAPS have partially complied. They furnished the warrant of arrest at the police station, however, we had to obtain the warrant application ourselves from the Pinetown Magistrates Court. We obtained the application and the supporting documents ourselves. They are non-compliant, however, it is futile for us to fight about the warrant. What we are fighting about is to get our client out."
Meanwhile, NCC spokesperson Dean Goliath slammed the arrest, calling it unlawful and deeply troubling.
Goliath said: “It is important to note that the High Court, in documentation issued on Tuesday, set out clear directives around the handling of this matter. Despite this, the arrest was carried out, which we believe shows a disregard for due legal process. The NCC views this as not only unlawful but also cruel, and a dangerous precedent for how political leaders are treated.”