Pagad G-Force leader, Moulana Moegsien Barendse’s two sons and their friend have been released from jail after spending more than a year in Pollsmoor prison.
The three men were accused of a triple murder which took place in Southfield in March 2022.
On Friday, the charges against them were withdrawn due to a lack of evidence.
Ebrahiem and Yusuf Barendse and Ishmaeel Armadien were arrested on September 8, six months after scrapyard owner Ricardo de Jager, 46, and his employees Thys Meyer and Adnan Jacobs were gunned down at the Victoria Lodge informal settlement in Southfield on March 30, 2022.
In December 2022, their bail application was denied.
On Friday, the trio was ready to launch their third bail application when they received the news from Advocate Nathan Adriaanse who said: “The State will however be withdrawing all the charges against all three of the accused.”
As soon as the magistrate told the accused they were free, the public gallery broke out in chants of “Takbir, Allahu akbar!”
Outside court, tears flowed as Moulana Moegsien said: “From the first night that they took them, I asked why the police were taking them, they said it was none of my business.
“That whole weekend we looked for them and we finally found out they were being held in Wynberg. The investigating officer told me she knew it wasn’t the boys, but I must tell them who did it, and I told her I didn’t know who killed the three people.
“We expected them to get bail but it was refused, after a year we had new facts and they were supposed to have their bail application (on Friday).
“Alhamdulillah we are happy they are out. They both lost their jobs and they must start all over again, and life must go on. One of them was supposed to get married.”
However, Ricardo’s aunt Lorraine Henry said she strongly believes the three men are guilty.
“It was disappointing to hear that they were being released because we know they did this.
“We thought that my nephew and the others would get justice in the end, and now we don’t know what else is going to happen.”