Muvhango star Joe Ragwala, his girlfriend Dorries Mthembi and two alleged hit men will have to spend another weekend in the cells.

This after their formal bail application was once more postponed to Monday.

Ragwala (37), who goes by the name of Ntshavheni in the popular Tshivenda soapie Muvhango, his girlfriend Dorries Mthembi and two alleged hit men stand accused of conspiring to murder wealthy Limpopo businessman, Goddard Mugwena.

The application was postponed on Friday last week, when the presiding officer could not attend it, due to an unspecified illness.

The full-to-capacity Court B at Thohoyandou Magistrate’s Courts could not accommodate the large number of spectators who had come to be part of the proceedings. Notable amongst the spectators were supporters of Mthembi, who had come in their numbers to support her.

Some of her supporters nearly caused a stir when they defied police orders to give Mugwena a space to sit, but Mugwena finally got a place in the gallery.

In the last hearing the two alleged hit men, Vicent Phakula (25) and Moses Ntlenana (24), had given their testimony and only Ragwala and his girlfriend were left to testify. The suspected hit men told the court they knew nothing and would have nothing to do with the said plot to kill Mugwena. They told the court that they were in the house to protect their employer, Dorries Mthembi

Ntsenana and Phakula also alleged to have been severely assaulted by police, who forced them to confess to the conspiracy. Under cross-examination, they failed to divulge the details of their employment concerning their remuneration, which they claim, had not yet been finalised when they were arrested.

In her testimony, Dorries Mthembi told the court she knew nothing and would have no part of the alleged hit plot. She claimed to have hired the two as her own bodyguards after realising that her life was in danger. She said she had not concluded a deal with them concerning their salaries when they were arrested at her house.

Mthembi said she had gone to the shops in Thohoyandou to get cosmetics, when she found them both arrested.

In her testimony, she claims not to have been married to Mugwena and said she was only working for him. In cross-examination, the state, led by prosecutor Mashudu Nekhumbe, put it to her that she and her co-accused conspired to murder Mugwena. Nekhumbe said she failed to understand that a person who feared for her life could leave her bodyguards at home and drive to town for an hour alone.

Prosecutor Nekhumbe also said that it was surprising for her to claim that she was not married to Mugwena, whereas she had three children with him, with the youngest only one year and nine months old.

In his testimony, Ragwala said he has no knowledge of the alleged plot. He claims he was in Gauteng doing some shooting for Muvhango when the arrests were made. He said he came back from Johannesburg willingly after being asked by the investigating officer and surrendered his passport after being asked to do so. He said his three children would suffer, as they would not have any financial support if he was to be incarcerated for a long time.

He also claimed that his part in the soapie could not continue in his absence.

Ragwala left the audience in stitches when he said the court should ask Dorries as to when they fell in love, as he could no longer remember.

After a short adjournment and some consultations, Magistrate J du Plessis set aside Monday and Tuesday for the completion of the application.

Meanwhile, Adv Wisani Baloyi of Wisani Baloyi Attorneys, who represented Ragwala and Mthembi in their previous appearances, withdrew from the case, citing lack of instruction as the reason.