Leigh: More surprises in store
2005-08-01 08:45
Borrie la Grange
Johannesburg - Another surprise is in store in the case of Donovan Moodley, the self-confessed kidnapper and killer of Leigh Matthews, who will be sentenced on Thursday. This is according to top detective Superintendent Piet Byleveld, the man who caught Moodley.
"He will be sentenced this week, but I am still carrying on with the investigation. I never stop, because I hate losing.
"It makes people very nervous and I like it. It takes time in such a case to check everything and I am still keeping the Matthews family up to date," Byleveld said on Sunday.
Despite the revelations that were made in the Johannesburg High Court last week, there are still several nagging questions, such as whether Moodley acted alone during the crime, and whether he was trying to protect someone by keeping quiet in court.
Byleveld did not want to speculate on possible answers to these questions.
He said, however, that the curious should bide their time as there was still a surprise in store for them.
After Moodley has been sentenced, the 126 pages of Byleveld's full statement on the investigation will be released.
Rapport claimed over the weekend that Moodley got the idea to kidnap Matthews from the movie Trapped (2002) - a kidnapping drama starring Charlize Theron.
'A boring thriller'
In the movie, which some critics panned as a "boring thriller", the daughter of Theron's character is kidnapped by professional abductors.
Theron and her husband eventually foil the criminals' "perfect plan".
The movie's catchphrase was: "It was the perfect plan until she refused to be the perfect victim."
Byleveld said Moodley admitted during questioning that he got the idea to abduct Matthews from a film.
"I did thorough research on all the videos he rented and visited all the video stores he frequented.
"He mostly took out comedies. Initially, I couldn't find a movie that was relevant and I had to search elsewhere," Byleveld said.
However, he did not want to watch the movie himself, as he was afraid it could jeopardise his objectivity in the investigation.
He said it was a new experience for him to deal with a murderer who got his inspiration from a movie or book. "It is the first time in my career that I have encountered something like this."
- Beeld