PHUTI MOSOMANE
HOME Affairs Minister Aaron Motsoaledi said on Friday that Thabo Bester, a convicted murderer, does not possess an official identity document, but he is a South African citizen.
Motsoaledi said that his department was able to locate Bester’s birth records at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital, despite him not being registered in the National Population Register.
According to reports, Bester was born on June 13, 1986, at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital to a mother who had four children, but he was never registered with the Department of Home Affairs. Interestingly, his three siblings were registered.
The Department of Home Affairs was also reported to have visited Bester’s mother, Maria Mabaso, who revealed that her mother, Thabo Bester’s grandmother, used the surname Bester.
Motsoaledi said that Thabo Bester’s mother told him that Bester disappeared at the age of 16 when asked why he was not registered with the Department of Home Affairs. Furthermore, Bester was never issued a South African passport, but he was found with what appeared to be an American passport.
It was also revealed that Bester only used his birth date to register for primary school and went on to study until Grade 5.
According to Motsoaledi, Dr. Nandipha Magudumana was found with two additional passports when she was arrested in Tanzania, despite having a valid South African passport.
Both the passports belonged to Dr. Martha Pashy Ntshani, who claimed that she gave them to Dr. Nandipha to assist her in obtaining a working citizenship in the US.
However, Dr. Ntshani told Home Affairs that she went to the police upon hearing that Bester and Dr. Nandipha had left the country.
On Friday, Bester appeared in the Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court where he was charged with escaping from lawful custody, defeating the ends of justice, and violation of a dead body.
Speaking through his lawyer, Bester raised concerns about safety in jail, and claims his food was poisoned.
But prosecution said they were surprised by Bester, saying he is scared to eat the food while in jail because he has been eating it for the ‘8years’ he has been behind bars.
The court heard that he hasn’t eaten since arriving back in South Africa and would prefer his food come from his legal team.
The court agreed with the state that these issues were beyond the authority of this court.
Bester was remanded in custody until 16 May 2023 to allow the state to complete its investigations.
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