Judgment in Thabo Bester’s reclassification bid reserved

The High Court in Johannesburg has reserved judgment in the application by convicted rapist and murderer, Thabo Bester, to be re-classified as a remanded detainee.

Bester has called on the court to grant his urgent application challenging the charge of escaping from custody because his constitutional rights are being violated.

In May 2022, Bester escaped from the Mangaung Correctional Centre in Bloemfontein by faking his death in a cell fire.

Earlier this month, the High Court in Pretoria dismissed his urgent application to be transferred from a KwaZulu-Natal super maximum prison to Kgosi Mampuru Correctional Centre in Pretoria for the second time.

Bester, who represented himself in court today, said it must be proven in a court of law that he did, in fact, escape from custody.

“The question the court is to answer is – do they not infringe my rights by titling and treating me as an escapee before findings in a criminal court? That is all we are asking. We are not asking the court to set aside the warrant. With all respect, they say there is a warrant, but how does this court know that the warrant is valid and what makes a warrant valid and not valid? Is it a criminal court to determine, or would they have to bring evidence to determine that there is no parole, no presidential pardon? There is nothing in the executive power that excludes that said that this sentence has ended, and Bester should be released.”

Video | Thabo Bester challenges prison escape charges 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66Gvk0bMNe0