Nicole Johnson and Ralph Stanfield. Pic: File
Cape Town - Nicole Johnson, wife of alleged 28s gang leader Ralph Stanfield, has been dealt another blow as the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) dismissed her application to appeal the denial of her bail application.
Johnson, who was arrested alongside her husband, has lost her fourth bid for freedom as the SCA ruled that her applications have no prospects of success.
The couple were arrested just over a year ago by the Anti-Gang Unit amid an intense investigation into a botched hit on a former employee.
During the arrests, cops also busted Johannes “Bal” Abrahams, Denver Booysen and Jose Brand at the Cape Town Magistrate’s Court on various charges allegedly linked to a manhunt of a former employee of Stanfield after he allegedly stole over R1 million from the couple.
During the explosive bail hearings it was revealed that the former employee, who is now a State witness, had not arrived at work on 24 November 2022 amid a tip-off that Ralph had planned to “kill him”.
The witness then hid his girlfriend’s BMW in a complex in Milnerton and went into hiding. According to the State’s case, Stanfield and Johnson embarked on a “witch hunt” and even threatened the father of the witness, slapped an unsuspecting neighbour and took the car without the vehicle owner’s permission.
Johnson’s bail was initially denied and she subsequently brought a new application at the same court based on new facts. Her arguments included concerns about her teen daughter’s health. But her application was dealt a blow when the State played an audio recording from Tracker showing she allegedly committed fraud.
She then approached the Western Cape High Court to appeal the magistrate’s decision.
However, Judge Hayley Slingers also denied her release on bail and explained when looking at the evidence holistically she found that Johnson would attempt to influence or intimidate witnesses and destroy evidence.
“A holistic analysis of the evidence portrays Johnson as a person who does what she needs to even if this means being deceptive and taking the law into her own hands. She does not hesitate to lie and give false evidence if she thinks it will benefit her.
“Such a person does not respect the legal system and would not hesitate to undermine the criminal justice system,” the Judge said.
Now the SCA has notified Johnson’s lawyer that her leave to appeal was unsuccessful.
“The application for leave to appeal is dismissed on the grounds that there are no reasonable prospects of success and there is no other compelling reason why an appeal should be heard,” the ruling states.
The couple is also scheduled to return to the Cape Town Magistrate’s Court this week where they are set to appear alongside former mayco member Malusi Booi where they face a mammoth tender fraud and corruption case worth R1 billion.
mahira.duval@inl.co.za
Cape Argus
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