The case against a man facing 33 charges of rape and 33 of attempted murder was postponed on Wednesday.
|||The case against a man facing 33 charges of rape and 33 of attempted murder was postponed by the Alberton Magistrate's Court on Wednesday.
The matter would resume on May 14, magistrate Janice Saulse said.
He said this was for the defence to make a formal application for access to the case dockets and for the State to decide what they would furnish.
“We are not setting a date for formal bail application.”
Earlier, the defence said it could not continue with the bail application unless it had details of the charges against the 40-year-old man.
“The defence can't proceed with the bail application, and wish to request a copy of the contents of the case docket or the indictment,” Legal Aid Board attorney Londiwe Shange told the court.
The State objected, saying the indictment and contents of the docket could only be made available for the purposes of a plea or trial.
However, Saulse ruled that copies of the documents be made available to the defence.
“The applicant should be granted access to parts of the State's documents.... The court will order that the State has the right to deny access to parts of the docket that will interfere with investigations or State witnesses,” said Saulse.
The man, who appeared wearing a red T-shirt and blue jeans, cannot be identified until he has pleaded. He is accused of raping 33 girls between the ages of 10 and 14. He also faces 33 counts of attempted murder.
He was arrested in Eden Park at the end of January after one of his alleged victims followed him home and alerted the police.
The girls, who are from Katlehong, Thokoza, and Vosloorus, on the East Rand, were apparently lured into the veld and raped between 2007 and 2011.
Outside the court, a small group of protesters gathered under the banner of Women and Men Against Child Abuse. Spokeswoman Vincentia Dlamini said they hoped bail would be opposed and that the man would be sent for psychological observation.
Prosecutor Joyce Xakaza confirmed that a bed was booked for the man at the Sterkfontein Psychiatric Hospital after the Director of Public Prosecutions asked that he be sent for observation. - Sapa