THE MERCURY
Bridge crash lawyer Koobashan Naicker, right, with his advocate, Jay Naidoo, walk towards the Durban Magistrate Court yesterday. Accused many times of playing the legal system, Naicker told the court he would plead guilty to the charges against him.
Bridge crash lawyer Koobashan Naicker has done an about-face, saying he will plead guilty to the criminal charges against him and was preparing for jail.
Naicker told Durban magistrate Anita Govender yesterday that his decision to “settle this matter” came after he spent two weeks in a rehabilitation centre and began regular attendance of Narcotics Anonymous meetings.
“One of the steps to recovery is to come clean and make amends. I realise I need to move forward in life and I can’t unless I settle this. In my mind I am comfortable with what I need to do to put this behind me,” he said.
He was taking all the necessary steps to put things in place in the event of being sentenced to jail.
Naicker, who has been disbarred because of trust fund theft, faces three counts of murder for the deaths of mother and son Gillian and Connor Bell and dance teacher Carmen Hunter in an accident on the Athlone Bridge in March last year.
He is also facing attempted murder charges relating to injuries sustained by others in the accident and a host of other charges relating to reckless and drunk driving.
A condition of bail was that he was not allowed to drive. Since March this year, the State has been trying to have to his bail revoked and, in a hearing before magistrate Govender, has called five witnesses who have testified that they have seen him driving.
Accused many times of “playing the legal system” by causing delays in the hearing – which also stalled the main trial – Naicker seems to have had a change of heart.
Yesterday he first appeared before magistrate Thomas Nhleko. It was confirmed that the main trial would proceed next April.
His advocate, Jay Naidoo, confirmed that there were “certain negotiations” between the State and the defence that could lead to the finalisation of the matter.
It was agreed that the matter would be adjourned for plea early next month.
He then appeared before Govender again for the finalisation of the bail cancellation inquiry.
After photographic evidence was produced of a speeding offence which clearly showed Naicker behind the wheel of the speeding car, he conceded that he had driven the car on that day “because of an emergency”.
He could not remember what the emergency was.
Naicker also conceded that he had driven on several occasions in September last year “purely out |of necessity” because his com-|mon-law-wife – who owns an aftercare crèche – had been in hospi-|tal and someone needed to fetch |the children from school.
He said the other witnesses, including a doctor, a barman and a senior prosecutor, who claimed to have seen him driving on other occasions, had been wrong and that these sightings had been cases of “mistaken identity”.
Naicker said that since going to rehabilitation in June and attending Narcotics Anonymous meetings four times a week, he had not touched a drink nor any other mood-altering substance.
He confirmed that he intended entering into negotiations to “tender a plea”.
He also promised he would not drive between now and then.
Prosecutor Vani Govender suggested to him that, as an attorney, he would have known that a person had to adhere to bail conditions and, if there really had been emergency situations, he could have asked the investigating officer for permission to drive.
The magistrate said she would make her ruling on November 6 – the same day that Naicker is supposed to plead in the main case. Should that not proceed, and the magistrate rules to revoke his bail, he will go to jail.
Any plea bargain agreement with the State has to be approved by the victims’ families.
