A warrant of arrest has been issued for fraud and corruption accused, Gupta associate Dinesh Patel, after he failed to appear in the Free State High Court in Bloemfontein.
The warrant will stand for two hours from midday. His lawyer Senior Council Kenny Oldwedge made a plea to the court to personally present him to the judge.
The warrant will be effected should Patel fail to appear before the judge within two hours.
Judge Martha Mbele earlier warned lawyers for the accused, who were not on time at the court, that she would take steps to keep them in a place that would ensure that they are present in court when needed.
Another accused who arrived late is Iqbal Sharma.
The case relates to procurement fraud involving R24.9 million paid by the Free State Department of Agriculture to Nulane Investment.
Sharma, and 16 accused which include officials from the Free State Department of Agriculture and Rural Development had to appear at the Bloemfontein High Court on Friday for a pre-trial hearing.
The case relates to payment made by the Free State Department of Agriculture between 2011 and 2012 to Nulane Investment for a feasibility study for potential farming projects in the province.
The funds were allegedly diverted to the Islandsite Investments company owned by the Gupta family.
The state alleges that the accused colluded in diverting the cash.
The accused include former Transnet board member and Gupta family business associate, Iqbal Sharma, Nulane Investment representative, Dinesh Patel and co-director of Islandsite Investments, Ronica Ragavan.
Also, former government officials in the Free State Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, Peter Thabethe, Limakatso Moorosi and Seipati Dhlamini.
The state has indicated in the past that it is ready to continue with the prosecution of the accused that are currently in the country.
This while it is working on extraditing the Gupta family members who are also implicated.
