Ncube and Another v National Director of Public Prosecutions (6017/2022) [2025] ZAGPJHC 73 (3 February 2025)

Ncube and Another v National Director of Public Prosecutions (6017/2022) [2025] ZAGPJHC 73 (3 February 2025)

The court found that the applicants failed to place sufficient evidence before it to demonstrate that the prosecutor acted without reasonable and probable cause or with animus iniuriandi. The only evidence available was the complainant's statement identifying the applicants at the scene, which provided a reasonable basis for prosecution. The discharge under section 174 of the Criminal Procedure Act at the criminal trial does not, in itself, establish malicious prosecution or lack of reasonable cause. The applicants did not present the police docket or other evidence to support their claims, nor did they prove the quantum of damages. The authorities cited confirm that the threshold for...

Citation
[2025] ZAGPJHC 73
Parties
Applicant: Thembani Ncube; Applicant: Ndebele Mthandazo (Mandla Gwaxa); Respondent: National Director of Public Prosecutions
Court
South Gauteng High Court, Johannesburg
Jurisdiction
South Africa
Judgment Date
3 February 2025
Case Number
6017/2022
Procedural Posture
Leave to Appeal / Application for Leave to Appeal After Absolution From the Instance Granted at Trial
Outcome
Application for leave to appeal dismissed with costs.
Judges
K Warren
Legal Topics
Malicious Prosecution, Reasonable and Probable Cause, Animus Iniuriandi, Leave to Appeal, Absolution From the Instance
Civil Procedure Criminal Law Malicious Prosecution Reasonable and Probable Cause Animus Iniuriandi Leave to Appeal Absolution From the Instance

Case Brief

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Parties

Thembani Ncube

Applicant

Ndebele Mthandazo (Mandla Gwaxa)

Applicant

National Director of Public Prosecutions

Respondent

Procedural Posture

Leave to Appeal / Application for Leave to Appeal After Absolution From the Instance Granted at Trial

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the applicants have demonstrated reasonable prospects of success for leave to appeal against the judgment granting absolution from the instance.
  2. 2 Whether the criminal court's discharge of the applicants under section 174 of the Criminal Procedure Act is sufficient to establish lack of reasonable and probable cause for prosecution.
  3. 3 Whether the applicants proved that the prosecutor acted with animus iniuriandi and without reasonable and probable cause.

Ratio Decidendi

The court found that the applicants failed to place sufficient evidence before it to demonstrate that the prosecutor acted without reasonable and probable cause or with animus iniuriandi. The only evidence available was the complainant's statement identifying the applicants at the scene, which provided a reasonable basis for prosecution. The discharge under section 174 of the Criminal Procedure Act at the criminal trial does not, in itself, establish malicious prosecution or lack of reasonable cause. The applicants did not present the police docket or other evidence to support their claims, nor did they prove the quantum of damages. The authorities cited confirm that the threshold for...

Court Disposition

Application for leave to appeal dismissed with costs.

Orders

  • The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.
  • The applicants are to bear the costs jointly and severally, the one paying the other to be absolved.