Robert Lee Redd Junior, who was wanted in the United States on charges involving alleged sexual offences against children, has been extradited from South Africa after a months-long legal process.
Redd, 56, faced charges in Texas of aggravated sexual assault and two counts of indecency with a child. He had been wanted internationally since 2019 after a warrant was issued in the United States.
South African Justice and Constitutional Development Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi signed the surrender order that made his extradition official. A Gqeberha magistrate had previously issued an order authorising his transfer to the United States.
Redd was handed over to Interpol officials at the Humewood police station in Gqeberha on Wednesday. He was expected to travel by road to Cape Town before boarding a flight to Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey.
The allegations against Redd have not been tested in a South African or US trial. His extradition does not amount to a conviction. He will face the US legal process, where the charges will be dealt with in court.
Final transfer begins
Redd was booked out of St Albans Correctional Facility after spending almost five months in custody. He had been arrested in Gqeberha on 27 May by South African police working with US marshals and Interpol officers.
South African Police Service detectives from the Nelson Mandela Bay District Task Team, accompanied by armed Public Order Policing officers, transported him to Humewood police station.
He was then formally handed over to Interpol officials for the next stage of the transfer.
His South African wife’s family and friends gathered outside the police station to say goodbye. Some were visibly emotional as the Interpol vehicle left the premises.
Redd had been held at St Albans since his arrest, spending approximately 23 hours a day in a single cell, according to the available account.
Arrest at exclusive estate
On 27 May, a team of Nelson Mandela Bay detectives, working with US marshals and Interpol officers, went to the River Dale residential village inside the Westbrook Country Estate in Gqeberha.
Redd was their target. A source familiar with the investigation said he initially appeared confident and unconcerned, but that his demeanour changed when he realised the officers were arresting him in connection with alleged conduct in the United States rather than a local offence.
He was handcuffed and taken into custody.
A Texas arrest warrant had been issued in 2019. The charges arose after the mother of the first complainant reported allegations to the San Antonio Police Department in 2017.
US investigators alleged that Redd had sexually assaulted the girl and exchanged explicit messages with her. A second young complainant later came forward with similar allegations.
By the time the US investigation had progressed, Redd had left the country. He was placed on Interpol’s wanted list in 2019.
The identities of the complainants and details that could identify them have not been published.
New life in Gqeberha
Redd did not travel directly from the United States to South Africa. According to information provided about the investigation, he first went to the United Arab Emirates.
There, he met a woman from Gqeberha who was working as a registered nurse in Dubai. The couple married in Gqeberha on 28 December 2019.
Redd later lived in the couple’s Gqeberha home. He remained there until his arrest in May.
The relationship and marriage formed part of the background to how he came to be living in South Africa, but do not establish whether he committed the offences alleged in Texas.
Detectives tracked his movements
The arrest followed a lengthy investigation. More than a year before Redd was detained, the US embassy in Cape Town reportedly shared intelligence with Nelson Mandela Bay detectives indicating that the fugitive might be living in Gqeberha and had married a South African citizen.
Detectives then traced Redd, monitored his movements and became familiar with his daily routine, according to information about the investigation.
The arrest could only proceed after the legal requirements governing extradition and detention had been met. His subsequent court appearances dealt with the legal authority to transfer him to the United States.
Immigration violations raised in court
Documents placed before the South African court detailed Redd’s immigration status.
An affidavit prepared by a Home Affairs immigration officer, at the request of Interpol, stated that Redd had travelled from Dubai to Johannesburg and then to Gqeberha.
He had not applied for a visa or asylum, according to the affidavit. His visitor’s permit expired on 19 April 2021, after which he was regarded as an undocumented foreign national under South African law.
His immigration status affected his bail application. The court heard that an undocumented foreign national could face legal difficulties in providing a lawful residential address for bail purposes.
The proceedings also considered potential legal consequences for anyone who might have knowingly harboured him. The immigration allegations were separate from the Texas sexual-offence charges.
Extradition order not appealed
Redd made his first court appearance on 29 May, two days after his arrest. Several further appearances followed as the extradition process moved through the South African legal system.
On 26 August, a Gqeberha magistrate issued a formal surrender order authorising Redd’s physical transfer to the United States.
He was given 15 days in which to appeal the order but did not do so. The matter was then referred to Justice Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi, who signed the surrender order finalising the extradition.
The ministerial decision allowed South African authorities to hand Redd over to US officials. Interpol was responsible for coordinating the transfer after he left the custody of the South African authorities.
US legal process awaits
Redd’s arrival in the United States will allow the Texas authorities to proceed with the charges that led to the 2019 warrant.
The US courts will determine whether the allegations against him are proven. Redd remains entitled to the presumption of innocence and to challenge the evidence presented against him.
The South African extradition proceedings determined whether he could be surrendered to the United States. They did not determine whether he was guilty of aggravated sexual assault, indecency with a child or any related offence.
After seven years outside the United States and nearly five months in South African custody, Redd’s extradition marks the end of the South African phase of the case.
The next stage will unfold in Texas, where the allegations involving the two complainants will be dealt with through the US criminal justice system.