PRETORIA - The Pretoria Magistrate's Court has granted SAPS forensic expert Captain Laurance Makgotloe bail.
He has been released on R15,000 bail under the conditions that he surrender his passport and refrain from contacting any of the witnesses.
Makgotloe is accused of tampering with reports in high profile murder cases.
Magistrate Johannes Kruger said the court has found that any risks related to his bail conditions can be managed with strict bail conditions.
"The concerns raised by the investigating officer were duly considered. However, the court is not persuaded that such concerns constitute compelling or real reasons to refuse bail." Kruger said.
"To the extent that any may exist, such risks can adequately be addressed through the imposition of appropriate and stringent bail conditions. The court is therefore satisfied that the interests of justice do not require the continued detention of the applicant."
During closing arguments last week, the defense portrayed Makgotloe as a devoted family man with a clean criminal record. But the state argued he was a flight risk.
The ballistics expert is accused of manipulating reports in several high-profile murder cases, including the assassination of Vereeniging engineer Armand Swart.