A court ruled that a district surgeon must assess the mental and emotional wellness of a Durban man who allegedly threatened to bomb the Gateway Theatre of Shopping and the Oceans Mall on Wednesday to mark another anniversary of the 2001 US terrorist attacks dubbed 9/11.
It is also alleged that the 24-year-old man, from Newlands, demanded that a well-known Durban businessman sign over his assets and businesses to him and threatened to kill him and his family.
The threats to the businessman and attack on the malls were made on social media sites.
He was arrested on Wednesday and on Friday he appeared briefly at the Durban Magistrate’s Court for the threats directed at the businessman.
He was charged with a count of intimidation and another of extortion.
During proceedings, he was granted Legal Aid representation and the presiding magistrate, Sicelo Zuma, called for the district surgeon’s assessment of the accused before adjourning the matter for a week.
The State was represented by prosecutor Calvin Govender.
It is believed the accused’s family were concerned about his mental health, which they believe was impacted by the death of his mother.
Police intelligence became aware of the threatening utterances he made on social media sites. He expressed his displeasure at the killings stemming from the conflict in Palestine, South Africa’s political situation and threatened to strap himself with explosives and bomb national roads.
Further threats to bomb shopping malls in Umhlanga on September 11 then emerged, which police treated as serious.
Investigations conducted through the collaboration of various police units, including members from SAPS Durban North, narrowed the search for the accused to two possible locations.
Police planned and executed an operation on Wednesday, which enabled them to successfully locate and arrest the accused at an address in Newlands.
His cellphone was seized as an exhibit. The investigators found no explosives at the home, which was declared safe.
Provincial SAPS spokesperson, Colonel Robert Netshuinda, said: “Police were continuing to investigate allegations that the accused might have contravened the Explosives Act 26 of 1956.”