Krejcir hasn’t paid lawyers
Radovan Krejcir hasn't paid his legal team, and if he doesn't cough up, he could have no lawyers at his murder trials.
|||Johannesburg - Radovan Krejcir hasn’t paid his legal team, and if he doesn’t cough up, he could be without lawyers in his upcoming murder trials.
This emerged on Tuesday when the Czech fugitive, along with seven co-accused, appeared at the high court in Joburg on charges related to an alleged conspiracy to kill forensic investigator Paul O’Sullivan and Colonel Nkosana “Killer” Ximba, a top police officer investigating him.
Piet du Plessis, from BDK Attorneys, who represents Krejcir and his co-accused Boris Grigorov, told The Star outside court that Krejcir had not paid them.
During proceedings, lawyers representing the other six accused withdrew their services as they also haven’t been paid.
All the accused assured the court that their lawyers would be paid by November 9, when the case is set to proceed, meaning they would have legal representation by the start of trial.
According to Du Plessis, the firm would not be assigning counsel until Krejcir’s financial situation was resolved and he could place a down-payment on their future services for his upcoming trials.
This would be a substantial amount of money, as Krejcir faces two other murder cases and a conspiracy to commit murder trial in the next few months. He was also convicted of kidnapping and attempted murder earlier this year.
Du Plessis would not reveal how much his firm was owed, but a legal expert told The Star the legal fees at the level of a firm like BDK Attorneys can run up to R2 500 an hour.
If you add all the hours of preparation, an average trial day can cost R60 000.
Krejcir’s original kidnapping and attempted murder trial went on for more than 140 days, racking up a bill of about R8.4 million.
It isn’t clear how much of this bill Krejcir has paid.
His financial woes began last year, after an SA Revenue Service preservation order allowed the state to seize all his assets.
In previous years, Krejcir’s mother, Nadezda, brought hundreds of millions of rand into South Africa through the Reserve Bank. However, Du Plessis said his client claimed this was no longer possible.
On Wednesday, Krejcir and another group of co-accused were due to appear for their sentencing in the kidnapping matter, but according to Du Plessis, it would be impossible to assign Krejcir’s usual counsel, Annelene van den Heever, because of the fees issue.
According to the National Prosecuting Authority, this could mean his upcoming cases could be delayed.
NPA spokeswoman Phindi Louw told The Star on Tuesday: “The State is ready for trial (in the conspiracy matter) but unfortunately these postponements are out of our hands.
“We must ensure all accused are given a fair trial, and this includes legal representation.”
Meanwhile, Amanda Papaotois, the woman arrested for allegedly trying to smuggle a cellphone to Krejcir, was granted bail on Tuesday after appearing in the Cullinan Magistrate’s Court.
Papaotois appeared briefly in court before being granted R3 000 bail, which her family paid. According to the charge sheet, she has no previous convictions, and the State didn’t oppose her bail.
Papaotois was arrested at Zonderwater Correctional Centre on Sunday after an alleged ploy that turned sour.
The police found a phone hidden in the sole of a shoe she was carrying.
It’s believed she had been in touch with Krejcir’s family, who are in Europe, and had been asked to take him a pair of shoes, she told prison authorities.
It was understood that Papaotois, a real estate agent, had claimed to be visiting Krejcir to discuss the sale of his Bedfordview home.
While it wasn’t clear which estate agency employed her, the charge sheet showed she was a resident of Bedfordview.
The iPhone was discovered when it rang while Papaotois and prison warders were walking to Krejcir’s cell.
When prison authorities answered the phone, a person named Denis, believed to be Krejcir’s son, was on the other end of the line.
Papaotois is due back in court to plead on December 8.
This comes just weeks after reports that Krejcir had planned to escape from prison.
During a raid in which the police were tipped off, a pistol, ammunition, a knife, an item that looked like a Taser, a pepper spray gun, a screwdriver, steel blades, 10 cellphones, a memory stick, and a diary that contained the names of witnesses and investigators in his cases were allegedly found in his cell.
shain.germaner@inl.co.za, angelique.serrao@inl.co.za
The Star
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