The High Court in Johannesburg has dismissed the latest bail application of an undocumented Zimbabwean national convicted of multiple serious crimes. Jeremiah Nyasha Musuwach Dube, who has been in custody for over a decade, had sought release pending his application for leave to appeal against his sentence with the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA). Dube was arrested in July 2015 and remained in custody throughout his trial, which commenced in August 2018.
Following multiple interlocutory applications that were dismissed for lack of merit and with his conduct during the trial deemed an abuse of process, Dube was sentenced in April 2024 to an effective 65-year prison term for money laundering, VAT fraud, corruption and possession of illegal identity documents. The Zimbabwean was never granted bail throughout his trial during which he tried to fight for his release even in the SCA. This was due to Dube not having a valid passport and a special permit to be in South Africa legally.
His Zimbabwe Exemption Permit (ZEP) expired in December 2017, while his passport expired in October 2022. In his latest bail application, heard on 19 December 2025, Dube argued that the fact that he does not have a valid passport or a valid permit to stay in South Africa should not play a role in the high court’s consideration of bail. He told the court that, if granted bail, he could go to the Zimbabwean Embassy and get a new passport.
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Dube also contended that getting a permit should not be a problem, as he was previously given one. The Zimbabwean national also argued that section 321 of the Criminal Procedure Act (CPA), which deals with suspension of sentences pending appeal, should take precedence over section 60, which governs bail.
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