Fraud-accused Robert Pace to appoint new attorney, case postponed

Update

MOSSEL BAY NEWS - The pre-trial conference for Mossel Bay resident Robert Pace has been postponed to December after his legal representative withdrew yesterday, 29 October.

The Da Gamaskop Police arrested Pace in July 2024 for allegedly defrauding several Garden Route residents, mostly pensioners, between 2018 and 2024.

He allegedly received millions from the victims, telling them that the money would be used to purchase plots of land he had earmarked for a housing development.

Pace appeared in the Mossel Bay Regional Court yesterday, when his legal aid representative said she was withdrawing from the matter as the accused no longer qualifies for legal aid.

Magistrate Jerome Koeries asked Pace if he intended to appoint a private attorney, to which he said yes, but that he would only be able to do so in mid-December when he is expected to receive some funds.

Koeries said the matter could not receive a trial date without Pace having a new attorney. He postponed the matter to 10 December; however, Pace asked for a later date, as he only expected his incoming money in mid-December.

To this, Koeries said no. “I have to pressure you to get your house in order,” he told Pace.

Koeries said whenever Pace appears, he sees many people present in the courtroom. He asked Pace whether any of them were the complainants, and Pace said yes.

Koeries said he was not prepared to carry the matter into the new year and reiterated that Pace must appear in court on 10 December.

The matter was postponed, and Pace’s bail, R10 000 he had been granted in August 2024, was extended.

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