One of South Africa's most notorious rapists and murderers, Thabo Bester, has taken court action to block Netflix from broadcasting a documentary about his life - including how he allegedly faked his death and escaped from prison. His lawyers argued that 'Beauty and the Bester' was defamatory, but the streaming giant defended its plan to release the three-part investigation. Bester's partner, celebrity doctor Nandipha Magudumana, features in the documentary, having allegedly helped him escape. She is part of the court bid to halt the release.
The High Court is expected to give its ruling about 30 minutes before the documentary's planned release to a global audience on Friday. Bester was convicted in 2012 for the rape and murder of his model girlfriend Nomfundo Tyhulu. A year earlier, he was found guilty of raping and robbing two other women. Bester became known as the 'Facebook rapist' for using the social networking site to lure his victims.
He was serving a life sentence when he allegedly escaped from a maximum security prison in 2022. A fire broke out in prison, and authorities found a charred body they thought was Bester's, but it was later confirmed to be that of another person. Undetected for a year, Bester then allegedly lived under an alias in Johannesburg, aided by his partner.
They were arrested while on the run in Tanzania in April 2023 and deported. Currently, they await trial on several charges, including violating a corpse, defeating the ends of justice, and fraud, without having pleaded to the charges. Advocate Moafrika Wa Maila, Bester's lawyer, stated that the documentary infringed on his client's right to a fair trial. He contended that there is no proof of Bester's escape and labeled the documentary a 'kangaroo court'. Netflix's legal representative argued that the series provides victims of Thabo Bester a long-denied platform to be heard.
The alleged escape of Bester made international headlines and sparked outrage in South Africa, where sexual assault rates are among the highest in the world.
The High Court is expected to give its ruling about 30 minutes before the documentary's planned release to a global audience on Friday. Bester was convicted in 2012 for the rape and murder of his model girlfriend Nomfundo Tyhulu. A year earlier, he was found guilty of raping and robbing two other women. Bester became known as the 'Facebook rapist' for using the social networking site to lure his victims.
He was serving a life sentence when he allegedly escaped from a maximum security prison in 2022. A fire broke out in prison, and authorities found a charred body they thought was Bester's, but it was later confirmed to be that of another person. Undetected for a year, Bester then allegedly lived under an alias in Johannesburg, aided by his partner.
They were arrested while on the run in Tanzania in April 2023 and deported. Currently, they await trial on several charges, including violating a corpse, defeating the ends of justice, and fraud, without having pleaded to the charges. Advocate Moafrika Wa Maila, Bester's lawyer, stated that the documentary infringed on his client's right to a fair trial. He contended that there is no proof of Bester's escape and labeled the documentary a 'kangaroo court'. Netflix's legal representative argued that the series provides victims of Thabo Bester a long-denied platform to be heard.
The alleged escape of Bester made international headlines and sparked outrage in South Africa, where sexual assault rates are among the highest in the world.
