She was on Thursday acquitted of theft after the state’s circumstantial evidence failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt that she had stolen a bottle of painkillers from the Checkers supermarket in Cresta Mall‚ Johannesburg.
Benedict‚ who is best known for her role as Akhona in Generations‚ was accused of stealing the pills‚ priced R17‚49‚ when the supermarket’s security system was triggered by her departure from the store in December 2013.
A security search produced the pills‚ still sealed‚ from Benedict’s bag.
She pleaded not guilty in the Randburg Magistrate’s Court and claimed that she had bought the pills three weeks earlier.
Magistrate Pravina Raghunandan said that Benedict’s version of events was “not so improbable that it can’t be accepted” and found her not guilty.
There was no direct evidence‚ such as video footage or eyewitness accounts‚ to prove that Benedict concealed the bottle of pills before trying to leave the store‚ Raghunandan said.
Raghunandan said she was satisfied that the pills were from a Checkers store based on its labelling‚ but she could not conclusively find that the store’s security system was in working order.
The prosecution called two witnesses who testified that the Checkers security system is checked for defects daily‚ but failed to call the person who checked the system on the day Benedict tripped the alarm.
Benedict smiled and embraced her lawyer as she left the dock after proceedings.
-sundayworld