Cape Town - Promising athlete and murder accused Nigel Plaatjies will spend
another week behind bars after his bail hearing was postponed in the Wellington
Magistrate's Court on Monday.
The case
was adjourned to November 22 as Magistrate Alvin Saptoe was unavailable.
Proceedings
were postponed on October 14, when Plaatjies testified that he had been forced
to take part in the robbery which resulted in the murder of Afrikaans author
Winnie Rust in her Uitsig, Wellington, home on May 11. Her husband had been
asleep upstairs.
This is
the 19-year-old’s second attempt at bail. In June, Saptoe ruled that the State
had a strong prima facie case against him and his co-accused and uncle,
Johannes Plaatjies.
While
neither gave oral evidence in their first attempt, last month Nigel testified
that he walked in on the robbery.
The teen
said he had had an appointment with Rust to discuss the matter of her
financially assisting him to get his driver's licence. She had been paying for
Nigel's sports activities and school fees since he was in Grade 7 and the
athletics star regularly visited her home.
Nigel's
mother works for Rust's daughter.
He said
four armed men, including his uncle, were in the house and were busy stealing.
He was allegedly forced to take part out of fear of his life and the safety of
his family.
Laptops,
a handbag, bank cards and a cellphone were taken. Rings were stolen from Rust’s
hands.
He
claimed he was forced to accompany the gang in a taxi, was made to withdraw
money from her accounts and make purchases on her store accounts.
‘Family threatened’
He said
Johannes threatened his family’s lives if he did not comply. He allegedly
forced him to take R1 200, a cellphone, shoes and clothes, in a bid to buy his
silence.
During
bail proceedings in June, investigating officer Cornelius de Lange told the
court that Nigel denied being at the author's home on the day of her murder,
until a witness insisted that he was there.
The
policeman said that according to Nigel’s statement, Johannes forced him to
"help him with a burglary". He was to keep Rust occupied while
Johannes stole valuables.
Nigel had
no prior convictions. Johannes had convictions for a string of crimes,
including one for housebreaking, eight for theft, two for assault, and two for
drunk driving.
Rust's
husband Dr Manie Rust, 87, found her body when he was awoken by the bell at the
gate ringing at 15:30. She was on the kitchen floor and had injuries to her
face. She had been strangled and her hands and feet were bound.
Nigel
was arrested two days after Rust's murder. His fingerprints were found on a
table next to the 77-year-old's body.
Johannes,
34, was arrested the following Sunday. Nigel pleaded not guilty to armed
robbery and murder. Johannes is yet to plead.
If convicted,
the two could face life behind bars.
