The trial against former EPRFU president Cheeky Watson is set to get under way at the Port Elizabeth Commercial Crimes Court on Tuesday.

Watson, who stepped down from the position in 2017, was arrested by the Hawks in March last year on charges of fraud and money laundering.

Watson and three others – Nadia Gerwel, Andrea Wessels and Mandisi Mkasa – are accused of fraudulent activities involving R12-million that was meant for PE’s Integrated Public Transport System.

The three appeared in court on Monday, but before the trial could commence, Watson’s legal team objected to the addition of a charge of failure to report suspicion of theft against him.

However, magistrate Lionel Lindoor dismissed the application, saying that it would not be in the interests of justice to grant a separation of the trial.

Photo: Eugene Coetzee/The Herald