The Eastern Cape High Court in Gqeberha will on Monday hear the first part of the appeal process in the case of Timothy Omotoso and his co-accused who were acquitted in April of rape and human trafficking.

This follows a directive by judge Irma Schoeman after the state sent a request for clarification of factual findings in her judgment, which is required before the state can request reservation of questions of law in terms of section 319 of the Criminal Procedure Act for consideration by the Supreme Court of Appeal. 

National Prosecuting Authority national spokesperson Adv Mthunzi Mhaga said this is the “only limited mechanism in which the state can appeal an acquittal judgment in South African law”.

Mhaga said the judge ordered the state and defence to argue the matter before her after Omotoso's attorney notified the registrar that the defence was opposed to the state's request. 

“We take the view that it will be appropriate and in order for the judge to provide such clarification before the state can identify and request her to reserve those questions of law,” he said.

Omotoso and his two co-accused were acquitted by Schoeman in the Gqeberha high court of rape, sexual assault and human trafficking.

Schoeman ruled that while she might subjectively believe the complainants, the state had presented nothing to disprove the account presented by the accused.

Omotoso had spent eight years behind bars and faced 32 charges including sexual assault, rape, racketeering and human trafficking. He was alleged to have groomed and abused girls as young as 14, but in April, exactly eight years after his arrest, he walked out a free man, after the judge lambasted the prosecution for rank incompetence and failure to corroborate the charges. 

He was deported from South Africa to Nigeria in May.