Charges dropped in med school scam case
The case against three people arrested in the cash-for-space scandal at UKZN's medical school has been struck from the roll.
Durban restaurateurs, Varsha and Hitesh Bhatt - as well as businesswoman, Preshni Hiramun were arrested last May - and accused of selling places at the school.
They've been in and out of court over the last 18 months.
On the last occasion, the magistrate warned the state that if it wasn't ready to proceed today - the charges would have to be dropped.
Regardless, the state today brought a formal application to adjourn the matter once again, this time for a year.
A policewoman from the Hawks who has been tasked with going through the computers and mobile devices that were seized during the raids took the stand.
She explained the magnitude of the task at hand and said she still needed around a year to finish.
The defence however asked for the matter to be struck from the roll. The accused's lawyers said their clients lives were in limbo. The magistrate agreed - saying it seemed the State didn't have the capacity to complete its investigations within a reasonable timeframe and he was not prepared to renege on his warning.
