The State's provision of only a third of the documents in its possession to Shauwn Mpisane's legal team was queried in court.
|||Durban - The State's provision of only a third of the documents in its possession to Durban businesswoman Shauwn Mpisane's legal team was queried in the Durban Regional Court on Monday.
Rafik Bhana SC, for Mpisane, contended this was a clear indication that the State had suppressed evidence.
The State's decision was “completely inexplicable” and “should have the gravest consequences” for its case, he told the court.
Bhana made the comments after prosecutor Meera Naidu provided the court with a list of 182 statements, subpoenas, and letters of correspondence.
Bhana, who is defending Mpisane on charges that she inflated invoices of her business - Zikhulise Cleaning, Maintenance, and Transport CC - by more than R5 million to cut her tax bill, said at the start of the trial his legal team had received only 64 documents.
“Clearly, what we were given was deficient and inadequate,” he said.
The matter was postponed to September 16 to allow the National Directorate of Public Prosecutions time to respond to representations made by Mpisane's legal team about the prosecution's conduct.
Bhana told the court lawyers from the SA Revenue Service had said they wanted to respond to accusations made in a representation by Mpisane.
Mpisane is also accused of violating the Close Corporations Act by remaining the sole member of Zikhulise Cleaning, Maintenance, and Transport CC when she had a previous fraud conviction.
She has pleaded not guilty.
Sapa