Teffo gets dumped again by his new lawyer after a disagreement

Malesela Teffo, a former advocate, is once more without a lawyer after his replacement withdrew on Wednesday as a result of a disagreement between the two.

For the third time, Teffo refused to enter the courtroom when he was scheduled to appear before the Pretoria magistrate’s court.

ALSO READ: From advocate to accused: Teffo faces fraud and theft charges

Teffo, however, remained in the court’s holding cells once more and steadfastly maintained that he was not prosecuted since he had not yet provided his fingerprints.

Since his arrest on 1 August, he has presented the same defense in every court appearance.
Teffo has persisted in disobeying a judge’s order to provide his fingerprints.

ALSO READ: Legal Practice Council confirms Teffo is still struck off the roll

WHY THE NEW LAWYER DROPPED TEFFO?

TimesLive reported that Eddie Maloba, his attorney, said him and Teffo were unable to come to terms about the submission of fingerprints.

“I said if he feels the state is not doing things correctly, he can have a recourse against the state in the civil court, which he can do after having complied with the request of fingerprints, but we didn’t agree on this. After that, I felt we were in a stalemate and there was no progress.”

ALSO READ: Wait, What? Advocate Teffo accuses Judge Maumela of bewitching him

In his absence, the state asked that the case be continued without him so that more research could be done, which would cause another delay.

“This would practically mean we will not proceed, so I decided to withdraw on record,” he said.

ALSO READ: Wait, What? Advocate Teffo accuses Judge Maumela of bewitching him

Teffo’s initial legal counsel, Advocate Nombeko Mabena and attorney Ike Khumalo, withdrew from the case on 10 August as a result of his repeated refusal to follow their advise and join the courtroom. This back and forth was the cause of their withdrawal.

WHAT ARE THE CHARGES?

Malesela is accused with theft, violence, malicious property damage, and possession of allegedly stolen goods.

For further investigation, the subject matter has been postponed until 11 October 2023.