A braai for an alibi, witness claims

“THOSE f***ing farmworkers!” Justus Christiaan (‘Shorty’) Erasmus seemed angry and agitated when he made this remark to a guest at his home in Windhoek on the afternoon of March 5 2005 – the day that his parents were murdered at their farm between Rehoboth and Kalkrand, the latest prosecution witness to testify in the trial of Erasmus and three co-accused claimed in the High Court in Windhoek yesterday.

Erasmus (30), whose parents were among eight people murdered at farm Kareeboomvloer between Rehoboth and Kalkrand between March 4 to 5 2005, has pleaded not guilty to all 15 charges, including eight counts of murder, that he and three co-accused face in connection with the events that took place at the farm. The prosecution alleges that Erasmus recruited one of the men in the dock with him, Rehoboth resident Sylvester Beukes (23), to murder his parents.Erasmus denies this.Erasmus had been having what seemed like an angry cellphone conversation with someone who appeared to be shouting at him before he made the remark about “f***ing farmworkers” to Sean Naude, who was attending a barbecue at Erasmus’s house in Hochland Park on March 5 2005, Naude told Judge President Petrus Damaseb.Naude said he had found it suspicious in the first place that Erasmus, who had not previously been on very friendly terms with him, extended a friendly invite to him and his then fiancé to join a braai at his house that day.The prosecution also alleges that Beukes and his brother, Gavin Beukes (26), lured Erasmus’s parents, Justus and Elzabe Erasmus, to the farm on March 5 2005 by ordering the foreman at the farm, Sunnybooi Swartbooi, who also ended up being killed, to contact the couple in Windhoek and report an accident to them.When the couple arrived at the farm that afternoon, they were both shot dead.Naude testified that at around three or four o’clock on the same afternoon, he saw ‘Shorty’ Erasmus in conversation on a cellphone.He could hear that the conversation was about Erasmus having to go to a farm because there were problems with a worker, he said.Erasmus said, though, that he was having a braai and had guests, and that he would drive to the farm the next morning, Naude said he overheard.When the conversation was over, Naude asked Erasmus about it, and Erasmus told him that his parents would be driving out to the farm to deal with the problem, that they would stay over for the night, and that he would join them the next morning, Naude testified.He added that a little later he saw Erasmus again in conversation, but this time on a different cellphone.Erasmus seemed angry and agitated, and it sounded like he was talking to an Afrikaans-speaking man who seemed to be shouting at the other end, Naude said.When Erasmus saw him standing nearby, he cut the conversation short, Naude said.According to Naude, he asked Erasmus what the matter was as Erasmus walked past him, and Erasmus replied, in Afrikaans: “Daai f***en plaaswerkers!” (“Those f***ing farmworkers!”) “He seemed very angry,” Naude said.Late that afternoon, Erasmus was again involved in a cellphone conversation, Naude said.After this, he told Naude that he had to leave for the farm at that stage because “one of the former farmworkers had arrived at the farm intoxicated and was causing trouble”, Naude said.When he made an offer to Erasmus that he could accompany him to the farm to help him deal with the situation, Erasmus declined, saying he could handle it by himself, Naude said.In the first stages of the trial in early March last year, Judge President Damaseb heard testimony that Erasmus had made a report about finding his parents murdered at the farm at the Rehoboth Police Station at around half past one on the morning of March 6 2005.According to that testimony, Erasmus told Police Sergeant Martinus Eimann that he had decided to drive to the farm after he had made several phone calls to the farm without getting any answer there.Naude said he later felt – perhaps because he tended to be suspicious – that the whole braai and him and his fiance being invited to join Erasmus and his guests, whereas Erasmus had never before been particularly friendly with them, had been suspect, “and that we were used as an alibi”.”But that is my opinion,” Naudé was quick to add.Defence lawyer Petrie Theron, who is representing Erasmus, is set to start cross-examining Naude today.Erasmus was charged about a week and a half after the murders at Kareeboomvloer, after Sylvester Beukes had made a statement to a Police officer in which he claimed he had been contracted by Erasmus to kill not only the latter’s parents, but also his sister, and that Erasmus had handed a .38 Special revolver belonging to his father to Beukes in Windhoek on January 31 2005.The revolver is alleged to have been used to carry out some of the murders at the farm.Under cross-examination from Theron yesterday, former Police Inspector Kobie Theron, who was initially in charge of the investigation of the case, conceded that he could find no corroboration of Beukes’s claims that he and Erasmus had contact with each other after Beukes had been arrested in September 2004 on a stock theft charge that had been laid by Erasmus’s father.The former Inspector also told the court that he could not exclude the possibility that a possible motive of revenge against Justus Erasmus drove Beukes to commit the murders, which he has admitted, may also have been aimed against ‘Shorty’ Erasmus, with whom Beukes was also in an employment relationship.The prosecution alleges that Erasmus recruited one of the men in the dock with him, Rehoboth resident Sylvester Beukes (23), to murder his parents.Erasmus denies this.Erasmus had been having what seemed like an angry cellphone conversation with someone who appeared to be shouting at him before he made the remark about “f***ing farmworkers” to Sean Naude, who was attending a barbecue at Erasmus’s house in Hochland Park on March 5 2005, Naude told Judge President Petrus Damaseb.Naude said he had found it suspicious in the first place that Erasmus, who had not previously been on very friendly terms with him, extended a friendly invite to him and his then fiancé to join a braai at his house that day.The prosecution also alleges that Beukes and his brother, Gavin Beukes (26), lured Erasmus’s parents, Justus and Elzabe Erasmus, to the farm on March 5 2005 by ordering the foreman at the farm, Sunnybooi Swartbooi, who also ended up being killed, to contact the couple in Windhoek and report an accident to them.When the couple arrived at the farm that afternoon, they were both shot dead.Naude testified that at around three or four o’clock on the same afternoon, he saw ‘Shorty’ Erasmus in conversation on a cellphone.He could hear that the conversation was about Erasmus having to go to a farm because there were problems with a worker, he said.Erasmus said, though, that he was having a braai and had guests, and that he would drive to the farm the next morning, Naude said he overheard.When the conversation was over, Naude asked Erasmus about it, and Erasmus told him that his parents would be driving out to the farm to deal with the problem, that they would stay over for the night, and that he would join them the next morning, Naude testified.He added that a little later he saw Erasmus again in conversation, but this time on a different cellphone.Erasmus seemed angry and agitated, and it sounded like he was talking to an Afrikaans-speaking man who seemed to be shouting at the other end, Naude said.When Erasmus saw him standing nearby, he cut the conversation short, Naude said.According to Naude, he asked Erasmus what the matter was as Erasmus walked past him, and Erasmus replied, in Afrikaans: “Daai f***en plaaswerkers!” (“Those f***ing farmworkers!”) “He seemed very angry,” Naude said.Late that afternoon, Erasmus was again involved in a cellphone conversation, Naude said.After this, he told Naude that he had to leave for the farm at that stage because “one of the former farmworkers had arrived at the farm intoxicated and was causing trouble”, Naude said.When he made an offer to Erasmus that he could accompany him to the farm to help him deal with the situation, Erasmus declined, saying he could handle it by himself, Naude said.In the first stages of the trial in early March last year, Judge President Damaseb heard testimony that Erasmus had made a report about finding his parents murdered at the farm at the Rehoboth Police Station at around half past one on the morning of March 6 2005.According to that testimony, Erasmus told Police Sergeant Martinus Eimann that he had decided to drive to the farm after he had made several phone calls to the farm without getting any answer there.Naude said he later felt – perhaps because he tended to be suspicious – that the whole braai and him and his fiance being invited to join Erasmus and his guests, whereas Erasmus had never before been particularly friendly with them, had been suspect, “and that we were used as an alibi”.”But that is my opinion,” Naudé was quick to add.Defence lawyer Petrie Theron, who is representing Erasmus, is set to start cross-examining Naude today.Erasmus was charged about a week and a half after the murders at Kareeboomvloer, after Sylvester Beukes had made a statement to a Police officer in which he claimed he had been contracted by Erasmus to kill not only the latter’s parents, but also his sister, and that Erasmus had handed a .38 Special revolver belonging to his father to Beukes in Windhoek on January 31 2005.The revolver is alleged to have been used to carry out some of the murders at the farm.Under cross-examination from Theron yesterday, former Police Inspector Kobie Theron, who was initially in charge of the investigation of the case, conceded that he could find no corroboration of Beukes’s claims that he and Erasmus had contact with each other after Beukes had been arrested in September 2004 on a stock theft charge that had been laid by Erasmus’s father.The former Inspector also told the court that he could not exclude the possibility that a possible motive of revenge against Justus Erasmus drove Beukes to commit the murders, which he has admitted, may also have been aimed against ‘Shorty’ Erasmus, with whom Beukes was also in an employment relationship.