Joburg hit-and-run accused gets R3,000 bail

A man accused of driving a vehicle over a pedestrian in Johannesburg's city centre has been granted a bail of R3,000 by the Johannesburg Magistrate’s Court.

Tadewos Chebo Somano‚ 41‚ appeared in court on Monday facing a charge of attempted murder for the incident‚ which was captured on camera. The horrific video went viral on social media.

A copy of it was posted on the Intelligence Bureau SA Facebook page. The clip shows a man crossing a road and then seemingly hesitating before an oncoming white car.

The vehicle suddenly swerves to the right and strikes the man‚ drags him across two lanes and then speeds off without stopping after narrowly missing other pedestrians.

Somano was arrested and charged with attempted murder.

But in his affidavit submitted in court‚ Somano claims he was not the driver of the vehicle that committed the offence. “I have viewed the CCTV footage of the incident involving the hit and run. I deny that I am the driver of the white motor vehicle.

“From the CCTV footage‚ it appears that a blue motor vehicle got scared and drove away from the complainant who looked like he was walking towards the blue motor vehicle‚ and drove quickly. The white motor vehicle which was behind the blue motor vehicle equally appears to have been scared off by the complainant‚ who starts to approach the white vehicle and the white vehicle knocks the complainant over and drives off.

“I deny that I committed any offence on that day. I know the area in which the incident occurred‚ the area is congested with traffic and people‚ and is full of one-way streets… it is unlikely that the hit and run was a planned attack on the complainant and was more likely a person who believed that he was being hijacked by the complainant. I intend pleading not guilty to the offence‚” Somano said in his affidavit.

Somano will be back in court on October 26.