News24 reports that the eight Presidential Protection Services police officers accused of assaulting motorists on the N1 highway in Gauteng claim they have not been positively identified by the victims and, therefore, want the court to release them on bail.

In the Randburg Magistrate's Court on Wednesday, seven of the men submitted their affidavits to be released on bail. Shadrack Molekatlane Kojoana submitted his affidavit on Monday. Kojoana also took the stand to give his version of the events of 2 July. An attorney, Xabiso Shotshonganye, filed the bail bids for three of the accused. He argued that his clients had not been "positively" identified by the complainants. An attorney, Fanie Kabini, submitted the bail bids for the remaining four accused. The men denied speculation that they did not abide by traffic rules, saying they should then have had "a string of charges" by now. All the accused indicated they intended to plead not guilty to the charges.   They are all on suspension with full pay and said they intended to prove their innocence at trial. They denied any involvement regarding a threatening message a State witness received. State advocate Elize Le Roux said the State witness, who received footage from an anonymous source, feared for his and his family's lives.

• Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Iavan Pijoos at News24 (subscriber access only)
• Read too, Assault-accused VIP officers deny links to menacing message, at BusinessLive

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