The State yesterday urged the Wynberg Regional Court to refuse bail for slain entertainer Taliep Petersen's widow, Najwa, as well as for one of the three co-accused in the murder, Abdoer Emjedi.

Prosecutor Shireen Riley said she had no wish to downplay Petersen's serious psychiatric conditions, but contended that Petersen's condition required a structured prison environment, says a Mail & Guardian Online report. She said there was a strong likelihood that Petersen would attempt suicide at home if released into the care of her family. Riley said the court had a duty to protect Petersen, and by allowing her to go home the court would be asking the family to police her and to supervise her medication. Riley said Pollsmoor Prison currently had 15 mentally ill patients, and was managing them adequately. Riley also contended that Petersen would be a danger to the community if released on bail. Earlier, when advocate Lionel Jacobs started his closing argument on behalf of Emjedi, magistrate Robert Henney said he had serious concerns about where Emjedi would live if released on bail. Jacobs said Emjedi would live in a family house presently occupied by his brother. Jacobs added: ‘If he is not at this family house when the police need him, his bail can be revoked.’ Evidence during the proceedings was that Emjedi, although married with children, also had a girlfriend, and that police arrested him for the murder at his girlfriend's home. Earlier, Najwa's family handed to the court a petition in which the community demanded she remain in custody. Najwa is alleged to have hired three hit men to shoot dead her husband in December last year.
Full Mail & Guardian Online report


However, lawyers for Najwa Petersen derided the case against her as being based on the evidence of a self-confessed liar. Advocate Craig Webster, arguing that Najwa should be released on bail, said the State did not have a strong case, according to a report in The Times. The State’s case, outlined during the two-week bail application, is that Najwa asked an acquaintance, Fahiem Hendricks, to recruit three hitmen to murder her husband. Hendricks, now in protective custody, will be a key witness against Najwa, but the court heard that three sworn statements he had made contained contradictions.
Full report in The Times