Fadwaan Murphy trial postponed after deaths of his co-accused sister and lawyer
Image: Facebook/Glenda Bird
Murphy's sister and fellow accused, Glenda Bird, died of cancer last week. The Daily Voice reported that she was recently diagnosed with advanced pancreatic cancer.
Her death came two weeks after her senior counsel, advocate Vernon Jantjies, was killed in an alleged hit outside his linen store in Mitchells Plain.
Murphy, Shafieka Murphy (Murphy's ex-wife), Dominic Davidson, Leon Paulsen and Desmond Jacobs, face 229 counts, including drug dealing, racketeering and money-laundering.
They are alleged to run one of Mitchells Plain's biggest drug syndicates.
Defence counsel were expected to start arguments for a discharge application on December 2, but due to Jantjies' murder, the case was postponed.
On Tuesday, Judge Diane Davis again postponed the case, after offering her condolences to Murphy and his family.
Murphy was heard telling a member of his defence team: “I have no more tears to cry. So far this year I have lost six family members ... there was my mother, my father (referring to Jantjies) and now my sister.”
TimesLIVE understands Murphy had a close relationship with Jantjies spanning more than two decades and that he saw the seasoned lawyer as a father figure.
Image: Facebook/Vernon Jantjies
The investigating officer in the case, Capt Nadine Brits, and the state prosecutor, Anne Heeramun, were not present in court on Tuesday. Another state prosecutor stood in for Heeramun.
The defence is expected to argue for a discharge application when the case resumes on March 30.