Court denies bail to Lifman murder suspects again

Update

GEORGE NEWS - Johan (Jakes) Jacobs and Gert (Johnny) Bezuidenhout, accused of murdering controversial Cape businessman Mark Lifman, failed once again to secure bail today, Thursday 12 February.

Magistrate Mashau Ramalebane in his ruling at the George Magistrate’s Court, stated that none of the so-called new evidence presented by the defence could be considered genuinely new.

According to him, the information had merely been reshuffled to appear as new facts.

The defence argued, among other things, that the accused are not given enough time to consult with their legal representatives, that when consultations do take place they cannot do so in private, that they are denied access to medical care, are not provided with medication, are not allowed to contact their lawyers or loved ones, and are held in isolation for 23 hours a day.

The two men had filed fresh bail applications in January, citing these “new facts” as the basis for their request.

Mark Lifman was shot dead on 3 November 2024 in the parking lot of the Garden Route Mall in George. He was struck by five bullets and was pronounced dead at the scene.