ABATHEMBU king Buyelekhaya Dalindyebo is headed back to the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) to fight his 2009 conviction for culpable homicide.
And he has put together a high powered team of lawyers to keep him out of jail.
The Dispatch learnt that Dalindyebo has appointed Queenstown-based attorney Wesley Hayes and Port Elizabeth specialist criminal advocate Terry Price to resuscitate his lapsed appeal to the SCA.
Both Hayes and Price confirmed to the Dispatch that they had been retained by Dalindyebo.
The duo joins the king’s other high-powered counsel, Dali Mpofu, in finding a way out of the legal morass facing Dalindyebo. Mpofu has been retained to challenge President Jacob Zuma’s attempt to dethrone Dalindyebo.
Dalindyebo is on bail pending his appeal against his conviction and jail term for a string of offences that included involvement in the death of Saziso Wofa, kidnapping, assault and defeating the ends of justice.
But, earlier this month, the registrar of the SCA sent the record of the original trial back to the Mthatha High Court, after Dalindyebo’s former attorney of record, Zahir Omar of Springs, withdrew from representing him.
Without a local Bloemfontein attorney in place – a requirement for appeals to the SCA – the registrar’s office had no way of contacting Dalindyebo, although officials at the SCA said they had tried getting hold of the king through the Democratic Alliance, which he joined last year.
The Dispatch was told that Dalindyebo had not submitted heads of argument to the SCA by the stipulated date and that his appeal has lapsed.
In a letter which emerged this week, attorney Hayes wrote to the SCA registrar Paul Myburg advising him of Hayes’ appointment as attorney of record in the appeal, with Price instructed to argue the appeal.
In his letter, which was attached to voluminous documents filed with the Mthatha High Court in the king’s urgent application to prevent Zuma from dethroning him, Hayes picked up on Dalindyebo’s erstwhile legal counsel.
“It seems that our client has been ill-advised by a number of attorneys previous to ourselves …which has confused him, a lay person not aware of the rules and time limits imposed by the courts,” he wrote.
Hayes asked the registrar’s indulgence to allow him and Price time to peruse all the documents relevant to the appeal.
“We assure the courts that we will have all the necessary documents filed by the end of this year.”
The lawyers are under huge pressure to go back to court as soon as possible to avoid the possibility of Dalindyebo’s bail being withdrawn because his appeal has lapsed and the Mthatha High Court forcing him to begin his 15-year jail sentence.
One of their first legal steps may be a formal application for condonation of the late submission of the appeal.
Price was involved in the latter stages of Dalindyebo’s trial but was not briefed for the initial attempt at an appeal.
The hard-nosed – and, at times, hot-headed – defence counsel, who worked as a prosecutor in the early years of his professional life, is regarded as the “go to” lawyer for the criminal accused in the Eastern Cape.
Among his clients have been dagga-smoking celebrity Paris Hilton who was arrested in PE during the 2010 soccer World Cup, pyramid scheme fraudster Maureen Clifford, Knysna DJ and killer Heinrich van Rooyen, former Buffalo City executive manager Vuyo Zambodla and former Springbok powerboat champion Lionel Ball. Price is also defending tennis champion Bob Hewitt on sex abuse charges.
Mpofu is part of Dalindyebo’s team in his attempt to block Zuma’s intention to remove him as king of the AbaThembu.
Hayes was involved in representing members of the Mandela family who successfully opposed grandson Mandla Mandela’s action in re-burying three relatives at Mvezo.
There was public outrage after it appeared that Hayes was acting for the Mandelas as part of his appointment as deputy director of the Rhodes Law Clinic, although the university confirmed he was entitled to undertake private work.
Hayes said last week that he was also representing Dalindyebo in his private capacity. — rayh@dispatch.co.za
Top lawyers to fight Dalindyebo’s supreme court case
And he has put together a high powered team of lawyers to keep him out of jail.
The Dispatch learnt that Dalindyebo has appointed Queenstown-based attorney Wesley Hayes and Port Elizabeth specialist criminal advocate Terry Price to resuscitate his lapsed appeal to the SCA.
Both Hayes and Price confirmed to the Dispatch that they had been retained by Dalindyebo.
The duo joins the king’s other high-powered counsel, Dali Mpofu, in finding a way out of the legal morass facing Dalindyebo. Mpofu has been retained to challenge President Jacob Zuma’s attempt to dethrone Dalindyebo.
Dalindyebo is on bail pending his appeal against his conviction and jail term for a string of offences that included involvement in the death of Saziso Wofa, kidnapping, assault and defeating the ends of justice.
But, earlier this month, the registrar of the SCA sent the record of the original trial back to the Mthatha High Court, after Dalindyebo’s former attorney of record, Zahir Omar of Springs, withdrew from representing him.
Without a local Bloemfontein attorney in place – a requirement for appeals to the SCA – the registrar’s office had no way of contacting Dalindyebo, although officials at the SCA said they had tried getting hold of the king through the Democratic Alliance, which he joined last year.
The Dispatch was told that Dalindyebo had not submitted heads of argument to the SCA by the stipulated date and that his appeal has lapsed.
In a letter which emerged this week, attorney Hayes wrote to the SCA registrar Paul Myburg advising him of Hayes’ appointment as attorney of record in the appeal, with Price instructed to argue the appeal.
In his letter, which was attached to voluminous documents filed with the Mthatha High Court in the king’s urgent application to prevent Zuma from dethroning him, Hayes picked up on Dalindyebo’s erstwhile legal counsel.
“It seems that our client has been ill-advised by a number of attorneys previous to ourselves …which has confused him, a lay person not aware of the rules and time limits imposed by the courts,” he wrote.
Hayes asked the registrar’s indulgence to allow him and Price time to peruse all the documents relevant to the appeal.
“We assure the courts that we will have all the necessary documents filed by the end of this year.”
The lawyers are under huge pressure to go back to court as soon as possible to avoid the possibility of Dalindyebo’s bail being withdrawn because his appeal has lapsed and the Mthatha High Court forcing him to begin his 15-year jail sentence.
One of their first legal steps may be a formal application for condonation of the late submission of the appeal.
Price was involved in the latter stages of Dalindyebo’s trial but was not briefed for the initial attempt at an appeal.
The hard-nosed – and, at times, hot-headed – defence counsel, who worked as a prosecutor in the early years of his professional life, is regarded as the “go to” lawyer for the criminal accused in the Eastern Cape.
Among his clients have been dagga-smoking celebrity Paris Hilton who was arrested in PE during the 2010 soccer World Cup, pyramid scheme fraudster Maureen Clifford, Knysna DJ and killer Heinrich van Rooyen, former Buffalo City executive manager Vuyo Zambodla and former Springbok powerboat champion Lionel Ball. Price is also defending tennis champion Bob Hewitt on sex abuse charges.
Mpofu is part of Dalindyebo’s team in his attempt to block Zuma’s intention to remove him as king of the AbaThembu.
Hayes was involved in representing members of the Mandela family who successfully opposed grandson Mandla Mandela’s action in re-burying three relatives at Mvezo.
There was public outrage after it appeared that Hayes was acting for the Mandelas as part of his appointment as deputy director of the Rhodes Law Clinic, although the university confirmed he was entitled to undertake private work.
Hayes said last week that he was also representing Dalindyebo in his private capacity. — rayh@dispatch.co.za
Would you like to comment on this article?
Register (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Trending Now
Latest Videos