Controversial North West businessman and alleged political fixer Brown Mokgotsi made a brief court appearance at the Johannesburg Magistrate's Court.
Image: Itumeleng English/ ANA Studio
The legal pressures continue to mount for North West businessman and alleged political fixer Brown Mogotsi after he appeared in the Johannesburg Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday.
Mogotsi was planning to go ahead with his fourth attempt to secure bail on “new facts”, after three previous bids were rejected.
His latest application was to be based on what his lawyers said would be new information in the case stemming from an alleged staged assassination attempt in Vosloorus last year.
However, this did not bode well for him.
The State opposed Mogotsi’s bail bid after the court heard that the controversial businessman was planning to escape from court during his appearance on Thursday, August 20, 2026. It alleged Mogotsi was planning his escape from the holding cells in a correctional officer uniform.
During a previous appearance, the court dismissed Mogotsi’s application to compel prosecutors to disclose the identities and addresses of State witnesses expected to testify against him.
The contradictory evidence
The court ruled that their details should remain confidential because of safety concerns.
The case was postponed to allow the State to hand the remaining investigation docket to the defence before the matter proceeds.
Mogotsi faces multiple Schedule 5 charges, including perjury, defeating the ends of justice, unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition, discharging a firearm in a public place and attempting to bribe the investigating officer.
The State alleges that Mogotsi fired 11 rounds at his own vehicle before falsely reporting to police that unknown gunmen had ambushed him while he was driving through Vosloorus. The incident occurred in November 2025. Investigators recovered 11 spent cartridges at the scene.
However, ballistic analysis and CCTV footage allegedly contradicted Mogotsi's account.
The State contends that forensic evidence shows the vehicle was stationary when it was shot and that no one was inside.
Witness tampering
CCTV footage also allegedly shows no other vehicles in the area, undermining claims that attackers had followed Mogotsi and opened fire on him.
The State further alleges witnesses saw Mogotsi leave his vehicle, fire shots at it and later reported that there had been an attempt on his life.
The State further alleged that Mogotsi attempted to bribe a police officer in connection with his bail application, and provided investigators with an incorrect residential address.
Prosecutors opposed the defence application for the witnesses' details, arguing that revealing their identities could compromise their safety.
State prosecutor Thami Mpekana told the court that one witness had previously been approached by people allegedly linked to Mogotsi, after personal details were disclosed during earlier bail proceedings.
The court has postponed the matter for a new bail application based on new facts.
Mogotsi is remanded in custody.
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