Howard Oliver, one of the four accused in the Franziska Blöchliger rape and murder case, turned on his co-accused in Wynberg Magistrate’s Court, saying he only wanted to rob the teen to pay the R200 arrears for his child’s school fees.
It was touch and go on Tuesday December 6 whether the murder case would go ahead when Jonathan Jonas did not turn up on time.
When he eventually did, the magistrate Gulam Bower told the assembled attorneys he wanted to hear the case that day.
The 16-year-old girl was raped and murdered while jogging in Tokai Park on March 7 (“Franziska remembered” Bulletin March 10 and “Angry outbursts as trial postponed again” Bulletin November 24). Detail of how she died emerged in court for the first time this week.
The Waldorf schoolgirl, who lived in Muizenberg, was strangled and suffocated and sustained blunt-force trauma. Sand was found in her throat, and she had been raped vaginally and anally. After a widespread search, Franziska was found by Kirstenhof police and crime watch volunteers. She had been robbed of her cellphone, watch, headset and diamond ring.
Wearing a fez and white-and-red T-shirt. Mr Oliver looked down as lawyer Monique Carstens read his affidavit. Mr Oliver, 28, claims that failing to find a community member to give him a loan, he spent his last R10 on a mandrax tablet.
Ms Carstens went on to describe how he (Mr Oliver) went to work that morning at Klein Constantia where he worked as a labourer earning R120 a day. Failing to find anyone to lend him the money, he left, taking a short cut through Tokai Park where his eye was caught by the glint of a cellphone, and he targeted the owner, Franziska, with the idea of robbing her.
Meanwhile he claims to have met up in the park with his co-accused Jonathan Jonas, nicknamed Jakkals, who had pointed a gun at him as he raped Franziska.
Ms Carstens read that Mr Oliver tried to sell the cellphone to people at the side of the road but no one wanted to buy it because it was password protected.
He then asked Jerome Moses to help him sell the phone, and he eventually sold it to Daniel Easter.
Mr Moses and Mr Easter are out on bail and facing charges in the case.
During the reading, Mr Oliver, who was in chains, appeared stressed while he watched Mr Moses, and he exchanged looks with Mr Jonas, wearing a grey tracksuit, who was laughing and shaking his head.
The case was adjourned for lunch. Mr Jonas walked down the steps to the cells and made a hand signal to Mr Moses. When court resumed at 2pm it was decided that it should be reconvened tomorrow, Friday December 9, following threats made against Mr Oliver and his family during the break.
Also, according to state prosecutor Renee Prinsloo-Uys, the investigating officer could not attend because the state-owned vehicle he had been driving had been broken into and he had to be on hand at that crime scene..
Mr Oliver filed his affidavit in support of a bail application. He claims Mr Jonas has threatened him, his wife and family.
When the case was heard on November 23, Mr Jonas’s bail conditions were relaxed for eight weeks while he underwent rehabilitation out of the Cape Town area. He is now in the awaiting trial section of Pollsmoor Prison, while Mr Oliver is in a different section.
