Alleged underworld kingpin Nafiz Modack and his group of co-accused have denied all the charges against them at the Western Cape High Court.
The second day of the mammoth trial which centres of the murder of slain Anti-Gang Unit (AGU) detective, Lieutenant-Colonel Charl Kinnear, got underway on Tuesday and was filled with commentary and courtroom antics.
Modack and his co-accused are facing an array of charges, including the September 2020 shooting of Kinnear, the grenade attack on his Bishop Lavis home, money laundering, racketeering and charges under the Prevention of Organised Crime (Poca) Act.
Modack and three others remain without lawyers, while the court awaits the appointment of Legal Aid representatives. But this did not deter the alleged dik ding from stating his plea.
During court proceedings, Judge Robert Henney said while he was allowed to plead, he cautioned Modack about providing a plea explanation without a lawyer present.
Standing in the dock wearing a black Hugo Boss T-shirt, Modack appeared confident as he pleaded not guilty to all the charges brought before him.
Henney explained: “My duty as a judge is to protect your right to a fair trial.
“As a judge, I cannot give advice and I am not denying you the right to give plea explanations, but be very careful with this. I will be failing in my duty if I allow you to explain while you indicated that you want legal representation.
Former AGU sergeant, Ashley Tabisher, dropped bombshells as he boldly denied playing any role in conspiring with Modack.
According to the state, Tabisher who has been slapped with corruption charges, is alleged to have conspired with affiliates of Modack to provide intel into the SAPS unit.
The former cop, who has continually declared his innocence, denied ever being a skollie and said: “The only gang I belonged to was the AGU, the anti-gang [unit]”.
He further outed his former colleagues, saying he was never led by Modack.
Tabisher told the court: “They also say these gangs have leaders. I had a leader, and that was General [Andre] Lincoln, with second-in-charge Captain [Franklin] Stone and not Modack, so I plead not guilty.
Tabisher, who is also representing himself, had mense in the courtroom laughing when he told the judge that speaking too much English gave him heartburn, saying: “As ek baie Engels praat, kry ek sooibrand.”
“Dan moet iemand jou Rennies bring,” Henney responded.
The judge also ordered all the AGU officers armed with guns to exit the court.
The remainder of the day consisted of the rest of the accused pleading not guilty, which was recorded.