South African prosecutors said Thursday they were temporarily setting aside prosecution of Duduzane Zuma, the son of graft-tainted former president Jacob Zuma, as they await a key witness testifying in corruption probe.
The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) filed corruption charges against Duduzane, 35, in 2015 for an alleged role in the attempted 600 million rand (about USD 43 million) bribery of former deputy finance minister, Mcebisi Jonas, on behalf of the wealthy Gupta family.
But on Thursday, the NPA told the Specialised Crimes Court in Johannesburg that it wanted to let Jonas finish testifying at a separate inquiry into corruption before they pursued a case against Zuma.
"The NPA took a decision to provisionally withdraw the charges against Duduzane Zuma, quoting reasons that one of our key witnesses (Jonas) in this matter is currently under oath at the commission for state capture," they said in a statement.
"The prosecutor therefore deemed it fit to halt the prosecution up until that process is finalised."