A 47-year old man accused of stealing two chocolate mould plates used to make Cadbury chocolates will only know next month if he gets bail.

The case against Lindile Stemela had to be postponed in the Port Elizabeth Magistrate’s court on Thursday as there was no magistrate available to hear his application for bail.

Lindile Stemela, 47, of Kwanoxolo, and Fayaaz Salie, 32, of Malabar, both appeared in court on Monday on a charge of theft.

Salie was released on bail of R2,000 on the same day, but Stemela was detained in custody because he had a previous convicion for robber and murder, and he is currently out on parole.

According to court documents, the value of the mould plates amount to approximately R800,000.

State Prosecutor Tim Van Rooyen said that Cadbury had indicated that there was video footage showing Stemela and Salie loading the mould plates last week into a toolbox and removing them from the Cadbury’s premises in Harrower Road.

Van Rooyen indicated that the moulds were then sold for scrap metal.

Stemela was back in court on Tuesday when the matter was postponed to Thursday for a formal bail application.

The matter was again postponed on Thursday to March 1 for a formal bail application.

The theft of the mould plates has drawn much interest in Port Elizabeth from local media and on social media.

It is not immediately clear which chocolates or Easter Eggs the plates were used for or how severely Cadbury’s production was affected, if at all.

African News Agency