'Horror' death a con?
2009-11-15 18:50
Johannesburg - The businesswoman from Hazyview who apparently died in May when her minibus plummeted down a cliff outside Sabi, is possibly alive and well - and might even be in Mauritius.
At the time of the accident, Nella Francom's body had apparently been burnt so badly that it was impossible to identify the remains.
She had seven life insurance policies together valued at R13m, including a policy of R10m at Old Mutual. Her second husband, Clint Francom, would have received R11m and her daughter, Nella Coetzer, would have received R2m.
The Francom couple had allegedly owed R6m to investors in Attraction Producers, their close corporation.
After her mother’s supposed death, when her mother's will disappeared from a safe deposit box in Hazyview, Coetzer appointed Chris Ehlers, a private detective from Benoni.
Ehlers initially suspected that Nella Francom had been murdered, but later determined that she might not have been inside the minibus at all.
Teeth
He believes the teeth belonging to the body found in the minibus do not belong to her. Apparently they don't correspond with X-rays a dentist had taken of her teeth before her supposed death.
A forensic expert found that the body's teeth had not been exposed to extreme heat, as would be the case when a vehicle is gutted by fire.
Furthermore, Ehlers received an anonymous phone call informing him that Francom is "still alive".
According to his investigation, Francom might be in Mauritius, Barbados, the West Indies Islands or even Durban.
Ehlers suspects various people, including a member of the Saps, might have been working together to commit insurance fraud.
According to a comprehensive report Ehlers sent to Old Mutual's forensic investigation department in Cape Town, on the day of the "accident", a mortuary in Lydenburg had made a logbook entry regarding her "death" at 16:00, while the "accident" took place at about 16:47.
Earlier that afternoon, Francom had phoned her daughter by cellphone and told her she had just been interviewed by a journalist at the Spur in Lydenburg. According to Ehlers' report, Francom was not in that restaurant on that day.
Ehlers, a former police detective, is also suspicious regarding the fact that her body had been burnt beyond recognition, while the vehicle was only on fire for 35 minutes.
DNA
It was impossible to conduct DNA tests, and the organs were completely destroyed.
"If a body has only burnt for 35 minutes, you would still be able to get DNA samples."
He suspects the body in Francom's vehicle came from a mortuary in the Lowveld, and could possibly even belong to a child. He suspects the body was first burnt and then placed inside the vehicle.
Wilna Badenhorst, of Forensic Road Crash Investigation Services, found that Francom's ID book had been planted in the field next to the vehicle. According to her, the ID book couldn't have fallen out of the window, since the minibus hadn't rolled over.
In her report, which is part of a police docket, Badenhorst says the minibus went down the cliff "at a very slow speed", like it would have, if it had been pushed.
Another forensic expert, Mark Froneman of Advanced Forensic Services, found the vehicle was set alight on purpose, since there was no faulty wiring.
Piet Spreeuwenberg, customer services manager at Old Mutual, says Francom's R10m policy has not yet been paid out due to the ongoing forensic investigation.
Meanwhile, the police docket has been transferred from Sabie to the organised crime unit in Nelspruit. Francom's daughter has not answered her telephone over the past two days.