On Monday prosecutors in the Western Cape High Court urged Judge Robert Henney to close Nafiz Modack’s defence case, citing repeated delays that they say amount to an abuse of process.
The state invoked article 342A(3)(d) of the Criminal Procedure Act during arguments in Cape Town. It asked the court to deem the defence closed because the delays were unjustified and prejudiced the administration of justice.
Modack and 14 co-accused face 124 charges, including the 2020 assassination of Anti-Gang Unit detective Charl Kinnear. They pleaded not guilty in January 2024. The state closed its case in November 2024 after calling 47 witnesses.
Judge Henney warned that continuous postponement requests for witnesses who never appear had become an abusive process. He noted the uncertainty also affected the rights of the other accused to prepare their cases.
Defence advocate Bashier Sibda said he still needed to verify witnesses before calling them. Prosecutor Greg Wolmarans countered that Modack appeared to be playing games and that no acceptable explanation had been given for the delays.
Judgment is expected on Wednesday.