Well-known court interpreter faces other side of the dock

A well-known interpreter working at the Thohoyandou Magistrate’s Court, Eric Radzilani, appeared in a packed Court D, facing charges of assault and rape last Thursday (26 September).

This follows Radzilani's physical confrontation with a female friend, Ms Vanessa Lukhwareni, inside Court C on 5 September, shortly after 13:00. The incident occurred in front of journalists and several court witnesses during the lunch break.

Journalists were still adjusting their camera bags before going to lunch when a fuming Lukhwareni passed a local news reporter, looking very angry. The reporter followed her into Court C, where she attacked Radzilani, causing his eyeglasses to fall off. The two started exchanging blows until one of the court orderlies grabbed Radzilani and pulled him to the side, preventing Lukhwareni from hitting him.

Immediately after the fight, a very angry Lukhwareni told a Limpopo Mirror journalist that Radzilani was making a fool of her, and she wanted to show him that she was not his doormat. “He doesn’t give me money and has the guts to move around with other women. I am going to show him who I am,” she said before heading to the Thohoyandou Police Station.

Both Radzilani and Lukhwareni opened cases of assault against each other at the police station. It was later learned that Lukhwareni had also placed charges of rape against Radzilani. Both were later arrested.

Radzilani has been placed on precautionary suspension by the Department of Justice.

Lukhwareni appeared first in the same court last Thursday, facing assault charges. Her case was postponed to 12 October.

When appearing in the same court where he has worked for years as an interpreter, Radzilani was all smiles as if he were there to do his job as usual. He even smiled at reporters while they took pictures of him in the dock.

His legal representative, Advocate Khuliso Negota, told the court that the two accused were in the process of withdrawing cases against each other and asked the court to also postpone Radzilani's case to the same date as Lukhwareni's. His case was also postponed to 12 October.

Some people in the gallery were surprised that an interpreter of Radzilani's calibre, who is seen as a role model to both young and old, could be arrested on assault and rape charges.

Date:04 October 2024

By: Victor Mukwevho

Victor Mukwevho Ne-vumbani joined the Mirror during it's inception in 1990. He joined the SABC newsroom in 1995, and was known by  listeners as "A u fhedzisela ari". He was a news editor for The Tembisan Newspaper from 2007 to 2015. He rejoined the Limpopo Mirror newspaper in June 2022 as a freelance journalist.

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