Knysna millionaire faces extra charge in perjury trial

Knysna millionaire socialite Leslie Young has appeared in the George Regional Court where an additional charge of statutory perjury was added to her perjury trial.

A Daily Dispatch report says the charges relate to accusations she made against her ex-lover, Ian McDonald, following their break-up in 2006. The state alleges that Young committed perjury in November 2006 when she made an application for a protection order in terms of the Domestic Violence Act. She allegedly ‘wrongfully and intentionally’ made a sworn statement before lawyer Leslie Swart, a commissioner of oaths, claiming McDonald had come to her house without permission. Young allegedly claimed that she had undergone tests and had tested positive for arsenic poisoning. The arsenic, she claimed, had been given to her by McDonald in her drinking water. According to the charge sheet, Young in fact did not test positive for poisoning. The state alleges that Young knew this was not the truth and that McDonald had never come to her premises without permission. In addition, she did not know whether or not he had a gun, which he did not. The statutory perjury charge relates to her making the affidavit to Swart in order to apply for the protection order.

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