Slain judge's wife re-arrested

The murder-accused widow of slain acting judge Patrick Maqubela, Thandi Maqubela, has been arrested after failing to appear in court, says police.

"She was arrested and she's currently in a hospital in Johannesburg under police guard," Western Cape police spokesman Captain Frederick van Wyk said.

"She will appear in court once she is discharged."

The City Press reported on its website that she was at Helen Joseph Hospital.

Van Wyk could not say if the police had traced her to the hospital or if she had been arrested elsewhere and taken there.

It was not clear why she was in hospital.

Maqubela was found dead in his luxury Bantry Bay, Cape Town flat on 5 June, 2009. His wife was arrested at her Sandton home in March last year, following allegations surfaced that he had been poisoned.

A warrant of arrest was issued for her on Monday after she failed to appear in court for an inquiry into her legal representation.

The judge authorised the immediate issue and execution of the arrest warrant, and declared Maqubela's bail provisionally estreated.

He scheduled a further pre-trial conference for 8 August, and ordered Legal Aid authorities to report to him urgently on the possibility of providing Maqubela with legal representation at State expense.