Brett Kebble murder suspect John Stratton has found an unlikely source of inspiration in his quest to dodge the dock: former deputy president Jacob Zuma.

Now Stratton's legal team - which includes Francois van Zyl SC, the advocate who represented Zuma's former financial adviser and convicted fraudster Schabir Shaik - looks set to use the state's conduct of its corruption conspiracy case against Zuma and Shaik to keep him from being extradited.

Ex-JCI director Stratton wants the Pretoria High Court urgently to stop the National Prosecuting Authority from requesting that he be extradited to face charges related to his former business associate Kebble's death in September 2005. Time is of the essence, as Stratton is currently undergoing treatment for prostate cancer.

The application is expected to be heard next month.

'One of the beneficiaries of Kebble's fraudulent transactions' The state has, however, branded Stratton's efforts to challenge the extradition agreement between Australia and South Africa as "nothing other than an attempt to delay his prosecution for the murder of Mr Kebble".

Scorpions special investigator Andrew Leask, who interviewed Stratton in Australia last year, on Thursday revealed that the state intended to prove that "at least" Stratton and alleged druglord Glenn Agliotti had conspired to kill Kebble.

"Because the state's case is founded on the allegation of a conspiracy between (at least) Mr Agliotti and Mr Stratton, it is of utmost importance that Mr Agliotti and Mr Stratton should be tried together," Leask said in court documents.

"Separate trials are highly undesirable and prejudicial to accused persons, witnesses and the prosecution. Not only will a joint trial prevent witnesses from testifying in two different trials, it will also prevent the accused from accusing each other in the comfort that the other will not be able to testify or defend himself," he said.

Leask's submissions seemingly contradict the arguments advanced by the state when both Shaik and Zuma claimed that being tried separately had or would compromise their rights to a fair trial.

In the face of criticism from five different judges - including Judge Herbert Msimang, who struck the corruption case against Zuma off the court roll - the state maintained that its decision to prosecute Shaik and Zuma separately had in no way infringed their rights.

Earlier this year, senior Scorpions member Johan du Plooy described as "absurd" Shaik's Constitutional Court claim that his rights had been compromised because he was not tried with Zuma.

It is understood that Stratton's legal team are scrutinising Du Plooy's response as backing for their argument that Stratton did not need to be extradited before the Kebble murder trial could begin. They are looking at the apparent contradictory arguments as a basis for their response.

In court documents, Leask revealed that, during his investigation of the Kebble murder, "it came to my knowledge that Stratton was very close to Kebble".

At the time of Kebble's killing, Stratton released a statement saying: "We are all in deep shock. Brett was one of my closest friends and I have the greatest respect for him as a visionary whose contribution to black empowerment in South Africa is enormous."

Kebble's bullet-riddled body was found in his Mercedes-Benz two days before a forensic audit into the business affairs of JCI had been scheduled for release. Agliotti, reportedly a close associate of Stratton's, has claimed that Kebble orchestrated his own death as part of a bizarre "assisted suicide" plot.

Forensic auditors have reportedly confirmed that Stratton, who was the second-last person to speak to Kebble before he died, was one of the beneficiaries of Kebble's fraudulent transactions.

Leask did not give any further details of what evidence the state had against Stratton, but stressed that his presence alongside Agliotti was essential to the just progress of both men's trials.

"A delay in the extradition will cause an inevitable delay of the trial, which delay is prejudicial to the state, (and) to Mr Agliotti, who is entitled to a speedy trial."

This article was originally published on page 1 of The Star on March 22, 2007.

With acknowledgement to Karyn Maughan and Independent Online.