The Johannesburg magistrate’s court has refused a bid by murder accused Victor Majola to force the state to hand over CCTV footage that allegedly captures the movements of the gunman and the alleged mastermind before and after the killing of entertainer Warrick “DJ Warras” Stock.
Magistrate Annelise Thlapi on Thursday dismissed an application by Majola’s defence team to have the footage presented during his bail hearing, ruling that doing so now would interfere with ongoing investigations.
Thlapi told the court that the video, which is currently undergoing forensic analysis, was “not yet ready for presentation” and could not be summoned at this stage of proceedings.
CCTV at butcher said to track movements before and after shooting
The footage at the centre of the dispute was recorded by a security camera at a butchery close to the scene where DJ Warras was gunned down outside Zambezi Flats in the Johannesburg CBD.
It is believed to contain around 45 minutes of video, tracking movements linked to the killing. According to evidence already before court, the footage allegedly shows the alleged gunman and Majola, who is accused of being the mastermind, in the area before and after the fatal shooting.
Investigating officer Abe Montwedi previously testified that the video appears to show Majola seated with two others, including the shooter, shortly before the attack on Stock.
Despite the defence’s push to view the footage now, Thlapi found that Montwedi’s account of what he saw on the recording was enough for the purpose of a bail hearing.
The magistrate said that although the officer’s description of the video content amounted to hearsay, it was admissible in bail proceedings and sufficient for the court to make a decision at this stage.
‘Bail is not a trial’ – magistrate
In turning down the application, Thlapi stressed that the current process was not a criminal trial but a bail enquiry.
She reminded the court that Majola faces schedule 6 charges, including premeditated murder and conspiracy to commit murder, which carry a high threshold for release.
Because of the seriousness of the charges, she said, the onus rests on the accused to prove exceptional circumstances that would justify being released on bail.
Thlapi added that once the forensic work on the CCTV footage is complete, a formal Section 212 report – a statutory forensic report used in criminal matters – would be made available to the defence as part of the trial proceedings, not at the bail stage.
Protection order paints picture of rising tension
The court also heard evidence about a protection order that DJ Warras had obtained before his death, which the state says forms part of the background to the killing.
The order was taken out against six individuals linked to a dispute at Zambezi Flats over rental collections and control of security at the building.
According to the state, threats were made against Stock and his business partner at two separate events in November 2025. These incidents allegedly formed part of a pattern of rising tension at the property.
Stock’s first court appearance linked to the protection order took place on 12 December 2025, and the matter was postponed to February 2026. By then, he would already be dead.
During the bail hearing, the prosecution argued that the protection order and the earlier threats provided important context and showed escalating conflict in the run-up to the fatal shooting outside Zambezi Flats.
Accused insists he was in Soweto: ‘Impossible to be in two places’
Majola, who has been behind bars since his arrest in December, has denied any involvement in the killing of DJ Warras.
His defence says he was in Soweto at the time of the shooting and that the case against him rests on mistaken identity.
On Thursday, his lawyer, Dumisani Mabunda, put forward fresh details meant to back up this alibi. He presented a statement from a mechanic who claims Majola was with him on 16 December, the day DJ Warras was killed.
According to the statement, Majola arrived at the mechanic’s workplace at about 11:00, driving a black Volkswagen Golf. The mechanic says the accused stayed there with him and other people who were repairing a vehicle.
The statement further claims Majola left at about 14:00 to withdraw cash from a nearby ATM.
“He was gone for about 15 minutes and returned,” Mabunda told the court, arguing that this version makes it “impossible for Majola to have been in two places at the same time”.
Defence to file new affidavit as bail hearing continues
Following the magistrate’s ruling on the CCTV footage, Mabunda asked the court for permission to submit a supplementary affidavit so that the alibi evidence from the mechanic could be formally placed before the court.
Thlapi granted the request, allowing the defence to bolster its argument that Majola was nowhere near the Johannesburg CBD when DJ Warras was gunned down.
For now, however, the controversial CCTV recording will remain out of reach until forensic experts complete their work and compile the promised Section 212 report for the main trial.
The bail hearing was postponed to Friday, when the state is expected to present its final arguments. After that, the court will decide whether Majola has shown exceptional circumstances and whether he will be released on bail or remain in custody while the murder case proceeds.
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