ConCourt upholds ruling declaring Cholota’s extradition unlawful

The Constitutional Court has upheld the Free State High Court ruling that Ace Magashule’s former Personal Assistant (PA), Moroadi Cholota, from the United States was unlawful.

However, the Apex court found that this does not deprive South African courts of jurisdiction to prosecute her.

Cholota was extradited in 2024 after spending four months in American prisons to face corruption and money-laundering charges linked to the 255-million-rand Free State asbestos case. She is among 18 accused, including former ANC secretary-general Ace Magashule and businessman Edwin Sodi.

The accused are alleged to have failed to replace hazardous asbestos roofs at more than 300,000 homes in Free State townships.

Welcoming the ruling, the 38-year-old Cholota, claimed she was tortured and intimidated by detectives when she was being brought back into the country.

“I think the nation also watched as I was taken away from my university where I was studying,  unlawfully brought to this country, chained and accompanied by countless men with guns, and this after I had to spend still time in jail. As you’ve all watched, I was brought into court shackled, which is something that none of my former accused went through,” Cholota said. “I was paraded before TV cameras and humiliated before the nations. The state fought for me to be jailed pending this trial. They had never made such a claim against my former accused. If it had not been for my strong team, which I’m grateful for, I would still be jailed  awaiting this trial and not being able to fight it the way I’m fighting it now.”

Delivering judgment, Deputy Chief Justice, Dunstan Mlambo, addressed the issue of jurisdiction after the High Court declined to prosecute Moroadi Cholota, citing that her extradition had been requested by an incorrect state functionary.

Mlambo warned that such an approach would undermine efforts to combat impunity.

“Such reasoning is not supported by the facts and would not strike an appropriate balance between the concern for lawful process and the imperative to combat impunity.”

Meanwhile, National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson, Mthunzi Mhaga, says the ruling vindicates the State.

“The interpretation is that the SCA judgment or pronouncement that the national executive makes or has the power to make the execution requests is affirmed. However, in so far as the judge refusing to hear or have jurisdiction to hear the matter, we obviously vindicated in  the sense that the matter is now remitted to the High Court so that the other grounds of special  plea can be adjudicated. Already, the Constitutional Court has said that her extradition was unlawful,” Mhaga said. 

The matter will now return to the High Court in Bloemfontein.

(1/4) Judgment on Friday, 23 January 2026 at 11h30: While the National Prosecuting Authority has the power to prepare outgoing extradition requests, only the national Executive has the power to make extradition requests to foreign states.

— Constitutional Court (@ConCourtSA) January 23, 2026