PRETORIA – Controversial North West businessman Suliman Carrim has been granted R100,000 bail with strict conditions in the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court.
Carrim has been behind bars since his arrest at OR Tambo International Airport two weeks ago. He is accused of failing to appear before the Madlanga Commission despite being subpoenaed to testify.
The State argued that his planned overseas trip suggested he could flee the country. Carrim, however, maintained that he intended to return to South Africa.
In his ruling, Magistrate Marc Carlewis said the court had considered the nature and seriousness of the charge, the strength of the state’s case at this preliminary stage, and the potential consequences of a conviction, including the maximum penalty.
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He said these factors did not establish a sufficiently strong incentive for Carrim to evade trial, particularly given his established ties to South Africa.
The magistrate acknowledged that the state had raised legitimate concerns about whether Carrim would attend future court proceedings. However, he found that these concerns did not establish that Carrim was likely to evade trial if released on appropriately restrictive bail conditions.
The court also considered Carrim’s residential and family ties to South Africa, as well as his property interests in the country. His residential address in Mafikeng was subsequently verified by the state.
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The investigating officer testified that Carrim was arrested while preparing to travel internationally and had initially failed to produce proof of a return booking. This raised concerns that he might not return to South Africa.
However, the state later confirmed that Carrim’s return booking was authentic and indicated that he intended to return to South Africa on 27 October 2026.
Carlewis acknowledged that having a return booking did not conclusively prove Carrim’s intention to return. Nevertheless, he said its verification materially weakened the inference that Carrim intended to leave South Africa permanently.