Three men linked to the murder of prominent Cape Town lawyer Pete Mihalik will remain in custody for another two weeks until their next court appearance in the local Magistrate’s court.
Mihalik, who was known to represent clients from the underworld, was shot and killed in November while dropping off his children at their school in Green Point.
The two alleged hitmen were arrested shortly after the assassination, while the third, an alleged Khayelitsha taxi boss, handed himself over to the police a week later.
Sizwe Biyela, Nkosinathi Khumalo and Vuyile Maliti made a brief appearance in the Cape Town Magistrate’s Court on Thursday.
Three accused have been charged with murder, attempted murder and the possession of an unlicensed firearm and ammunition. The charge of attempted murder is as result of Mihalik’s son being wounded in the attack.
The matter has been postponed to November 29 for one of the accused to get legal representation.
The state has brought an application that no cameras be allowed in court during the case. National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson Eric Ntabazalila says that the reason for the application is that an identity parade needs to take place first.
“There was an application by the media to be able to take pictures in court but we opposed that for now because there needs to be an identity parade. After that has been done, the state does not have a problem with the media being present and taking pictures or recording in court.”
