Judge in Anni Dewani murder case dogged by controversy
The family of Shrien Dewani, the millionaire accused of organising his wife's murder, fear he would not receive a fair trial in South Africa after it emerged the judge presiding over the case has been dogged by misconduct allegations.
Judge Hlophe has been at the centre of a series of controversies since being appointed president of the Western Cape High Court in 2000 Photo: FOTO24
Writing in The Sunday Telegraph, Mr Dewani's cousin Akta Raja questions the role of Cape Town's most senior judge in the investigation into Anni Dewani's murder on honeymoon.
Miss Raja writes: "Your [Mr Dewani's] fears deepen when you hear that Judge John Hlophe, who sentenced your driver and who may preside over any trial, is a controversial figure. Are you sure you will be treated fairly?"
Mr Dewani, 31, from Bristol, is next due to appear in a British court for a preliminary extradition hearing on January 20. His lawyers will argue that there is no proper evidence against him and that his case will be prejudiced in South Africa, where trials are conducted by a judge without a jury.
Britain's controversial extradition laws, brought in by the Labour Government in 2003, are currently under review amid growing fears they give little protection to British citizens who face politically motivated trials abroad.
The Dewani family believe the businessman, who owns a number of care homes, is being accused of orchestrating the killing in a staged carjacking to protect South Africa's lucrative tourism industry.
Judge Hlophe has been at the centre of a series of controversies since being appointed president of the Western Cape High Court in 2000.
In 2007, his behaviour was branded 'unacceptable' by the Judicial Services Commission, South Africa's legal watchdog, which investigated payments he had received from an asset management company without declaring them.
Judge Hlophe went on to give the company legal permission to sue a fellow judge for libel. The Commission decided, however, there was insufficient evidence to proceed with a formal public hearing into gross misconduct.
The judge insisted he had 'oral consent' to receive the payments from a justice minister who had subsequently died.
The following year, the judge was again investigated by the Judicial Services Commission after two senior justices serving in the Constitutional Court, the highest in the land, claimed the Judge Hlophe had attempted to influence a corruption investigation involving Jacob Zuma, the South African president.
Mr Hlophe denied approaching the Constitutional Court members and warning them to rule in favour of Mr Zuma. He has branded the allegations 'utter rubbish' and accused enemies of plotting against him.
In August 2009, the JSC dropped its investigation into the complaint against him made by the Constitutional Court.
In the latest embarrassment, his son Thuthuke was convicted in September of six counts of fraud, including buying a BMW using a fraudulent cheque.
In the wake of the complaints, Judge Hlophe had taken a long leave of absence but returned to the bench and currently presides over the Dewani murder although whether he remains the trial judge should Mr Dewani be eventually extradited is unclear.
South Africa's national police commissioner General Bheki Cele has already branded Mr Dewani a 'monkey' who had deliberately come to the country to have his 28-year-old wife killed on November 13.
General Cele has close connections to Mr Zuma, who attended the police chief's recent wedding.
Last month, Judge Hlophe sentenced Zola Tongo, the taxi driver hired by Mr Dewani, to a reduced jail term of 18 years after accepting a plea bargain.
Tongo is the chief witness against Mr Dewani and has accused him of arranging the hit in a signed confession.
CCTV footage shows Mr Dewani handing over money to Tongo after the murder. Mr Dewani insists this was a payment for driving him and his bride around Cape Town and was made before he knew the taxi driver was involved in the murder.
Paul Hoffman, a former High Court judge in Western Cape and now head of South Africa's Institute for Accountability, said: "The Dewani family has every reason to be concerned.
"The case has certainly been handled unusually and that plea bargain was rushed through the courts with unseemly haste."
The extradition process is likely to be a drawn out affair and could take several months and possibly much longer.
Should the British authorities give the go ahead, Mr Dewani's legal team, led by Clare Montgomery QC, is likely to lodge a series of appeals that could end up in the European Court of Human Rights.
One source close to the murdered bride's family said the prospect of a lengthy legal battle "would be torture for us".
In an open letter last week, friends of Mrs Dewani, 28, a Swedish engineer, called on her husband to return to South Africa to stand trial.
It is understood South Africa's Department of Justice will submit a formal extradition request in the coming days.
A spokesman for South Africa's specialist crime unit dismissed claims the case against Mr Dewani is 'flimsy' and insisted the businessman would receive a fair trial.
In 2007, his behaviour was branded 'unacceptable' by the Judicial Services Commission, South Africa's legal watchdog, which investigated payments he had received from an asset management company without declaring them.
Judge Hlophe went on to give the company legal permission to sue a fellow judge for libel. The Commission decided, however, there was insufficient evidence to proceed with a formal public hearing into gross misconduct.
The judge insisted he had 'oral consent' to receive the payments from a justice minister who had subsequently died.
The following year, the judge was again investigated by the Judicial Services Commission after two senior justices serving in the Constitutional Court, the highest in the land, claimed the Judge Hlophe had attempted to influence a corruption investigation involving Jacob Zuma, the South African president.
Mr Hlophe denied approaching the Constitutional Court members and warning them to rule in favour of Mr Zuma. He has branded the allegations 'utter rubbish' and accused enemies of plotting against him.
In August 2009, the JSC dropped its investigation into the complaint against him made by the Constitutional Court.
In the latest embarrassment, his son Thuthuke was convicted in September of six counts of fraud, including buying a BMW using a fraudulent cheque.
In the wake of the complaints, Judge Hlophe had taken a long leave of absence but returned to the bench and currently presides over the Dewani murder although whether he remains the trial judge should Mr Dewani be eventually extradited is unclear.
South Africa's national police commissioner General Bheki Cele has already branded Mr Dewani a 'monkey' who had deliberately come to the country to have his 28-year-old wife killed on November 13.
General Cele has close connections to Mr Zuma, who attended the police chief's recent wedding.
Last month, Judge Hlophe sentenced Zola Tongo, the taxi driver hired by Mr Dewani, to a reduced jail term of 18 years after accepting a plea bargain.
Tongo is the chief witness against Mr Dewani and has accused him of arranging the hit in a signed confession.
CCTV footage shows Mr Dewani handing over money to Tongo after the murder. Mr Dewani insists this was a payment for driving him and his bride around Cape Town and was made before he knew the taxi driver was involved in the murder.
Paul Hoffman, a former High Court judge in Western Cape and now head of South Africa's Institute for Accountability, said: "The Dewani family has every reason to be concerned.
"The case has certainly been handled unusually and that plea bargain was rushed through the courts with unseemly haste."
The extradition process is likely to be a drawn out affair and could take several months and possibly much longer.
Should the British authorities give the go ahead, Mr Dewani's legal team, led by Clare Montgomery QC, is likely to lodge a series of appeals that could end up in the European Court of Human Rights.
One source close to the murdered bride's family said the prospect of a lengthy legal battle "would be torture for us".
In an open letter last week, friends of Mrs Dewani, 28, a Swedish engineer, called on her husband to return to South Africa to stand trial.
It is understood South Africa's Department of Justice will submit a formal extradition request in the coming days.
A spokesman for South Africa's specialist crime unit dismissed claims the case against Mr Dewani is 'flimsy' and insisted the businessman would receive a fair trial.
