Alleged 28s gang wife, Nicole Johnson, has been dealt another blow after her second bail application was rejected by the Cape Town Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday.
The mother of two from Constantia returned to court yesterday for a new application brought in December by top criminal lawyer, Advocate Laurence Hodes.
Johnson, who is the wife of alleged 28s gang boss Ralph Stanfield, was thrust into the limelight last year when they were arrested by the Anti-Gang Unit (AGU).
The notorious duo were bust alongside Johannes “Bal” Abrahams, Denver Booysen and Jose Brand on various charges linked to a manhunt and attempted murder of a former employee, who had allegedly stole over R1 million from the couple.
The former employee, who is now a State witness, went into hiding on 24 November 2022 after a tip-off that Ralph had planned to “kill him”.
The State also revealed that in addition to the attempted murder of the witness, before their arrest, the AGU also reported that gunmen had opened fire on the home of the father of one of the complainants in November last year while the couple were in custody.
While testifying, Nicole told the court that during a prison visit, she noted that her 15-year-old daughter was ill.
After being taken for tests, it was revealed that the child had a medical condition that may require surgery.
Defence Advocate Hodes told the court that the fact that only Nicole noticed that something was wrong with the child, it was proof that her mother was not capable of looking after the children.
It was revealed that as the franchise owner of two Sorbet Salons, Nicole now faces losing both businesses as Sorbet had cancelled the agreements.
In her judgement yesterday, Magistrate Atta Theart said Nicole had not brought any new facts to justify the second application and claimed Nicole had fabricated the health problems regarding her daughter.
Theart stated: “The health of the applicant’s daughter was fabricated by the applicant. This is no new fact.
“The position of the businesses at the time of the bail application was clearly foreseen by the applicant.
“The court therefore found that the applicant did not prove to the court that new facts exist and therefore did not discharge the onus.
“The bail, on new facts, are therefore denied and the applicant will stay in custody.”
The group will return to court on 5 February.