Shorty ‘ordered parents’ killing’

IN testimony marked by a pattern of reticence and repeated requests to only answer some questions later in his trial, farm massacre suspect Sylvester Beukes this week again claimed that the son of two of the people he has admitted killing at a farm in the Kalkrand area in March 2005 had asked him to kill his parents.

“I received instructions from Shorty,” Beukes (22) told Judge President Petrus Damaseb as a second day that he has spent on the witness stand in the High Court in Windhoek neared its end on Monday afternoon. Last Thursday, Beukes for the first time since his arrest on March 6 2005 publicly claimed that Justus Christiaan (‘Shorty’) Erasmus (30), the son of two of the eight people killed at farm Kareeboomvloer between Rehoboth and Kalkrand between March 4 and 5 2005, had asked him to kill Erasmus’s parents.He also testified that Erasmus had supplied him with a .38 Special revolver to do the job with.Erasmus is one of the three accused men on trial with Beukes.Like the other charged men – except for Beukes, they are the latter’s brother, Gavin Beukes (26), and a friend of the brothers, fellow Rehoboth area resident Stoney Neidel (30) – Erasmus has pleaded not guilty to all 15 charges, including eight counts of murder, that they are facing at their trial.After Deputy Prosecutor General Antonia Verhoef had wrapped up her cross-examination of Beukes on Monday, Erasmus’s lawyer, Petrie Theron, used the opportunity to challenge Beukes with statements that the evidence he had given about Erasmus’s alleged involvement in a plan to have his parents killed, was all false and fabricated.While economical with his answers, Beukes stuck to the claims he had made on Thursday about Erasmus’s alleged role in the killing of his parents.When Theron put it to him that his version about receiving an instruction from Erasmus to kill his parents was nothing but a fabrication aimed at getting back at the one remaining member of the group of people who were farming at Kareeboomvloer at the time of the killings, Beukes responded concisely that there was nothing of the sort.”I put it to you that you never received instructions from accused four (Erasmus) to kill his parents,” Theron continued.”I received instructions from Shorty,” Beukes replied.Theron next put it to Beukes that he also did not receive a .38 Special revolver from Erasmus.Through his lawyer, Winnie Christians, Beukes has admitted that he used a .38 Special revolver to shoot dead five of the eight people who were killed at Kareeboomvloer.Beukes also admitted on Thursday that the .38 Special revolver that is part of the evidence before the court is the gun that he used to shoot five of the victims killed at the farm.”I received it from him,” Beukes maintained, referring to the revolver, when questioned by Theron.”When, where, how?” Theron asked.”I will answer that one at a later stage,” Beukes said.That was the same answer that Beukes has given to numerous other questions from Verhoef and Theron.He gave that answer when Theron asked him what specific instructions he was alleging he had received from Erasmus in connection with the revolver that he said Erasmus had supplied to him.The same answer was given when Theron asked him if he was supposed to kill only Erasmus’s parents, and again when Erasmus asked him on what date and at what time he had supposedly received the revolver from Erasmus.Beukes however also confirmed again that he had testified earlier that he had received the revolver from Erasmus to kill the latter’s parents with, and that he was supposed to be paid to carry out that job for Erasmus.All of this testimony was given in a trial within a trial that is supposed to establish whether statements that the Beukes brothers allegedly made to Police officers between the time of their arrest at their home at Rehoboth on the evening of March 6 2005 and their first appearance in court at Mariental on March 9 2005, had been made freely and voluntarily.Judge President Damaseb pointed out on Thursday last week already that evidence given by Beukes in the trial within a trial about Erasmus’s alleged role in the killings cannot be counted as evidence in the main trial of the four charged men.The trial is scheduled to continue this afternoon.Judge President Damaseb, Verhoef, Theron and Christians and the four accused are planning to visit Rehoboth this morning.The purpose of the visit is to establish the distance between the Beukes brothers’ house and the Rehoboth Police Station and to see what route was taken when, according to the Beukeses, they were taken from their house to the Police station and back to the house again on the evening of their arrest.Last Thursday, Beukes for the first time since his arrest on March 6 2005 publicly claimed that Justus Christiaan (‘Shorty’) Erasmus (30), the son of two of the eight people killed at farm Kareeboomvloer between Rehoboth and Kalkrand between March 4 and 5 2005, had asked him to kill Erasmus’s parents.He also testified that Erasmus had supplied him with a .38 Special revolver to do the job with.Erasmus is one of the three accused men on trial with Beukes.Like the other charged men – except for Beukes, they are the latter’s brother, Gavin Beukes (26), and a friend of the brothers, fellow Rehoboth area resident Stoney Neidel (30) – Erasmus has pleaded not guilty to all 15 charges, including eight counts of murder, that they are facing at their trial.After Deputy Prosecutor General Antonia Verhoef had wrapped up her cross-examination of Beukes on Monday, Erasmus’s lawyer, Petrie Theron, used the opportunity to challenge Beukes with statements that the evidence he had given about Erasmus’s alleged involvement in a plan to have his parents killed, was all false and fabricated.While economical with his answers, Beukes stuck to the claims he had made on Thursday about Erasmus’s alleged role in the killing of his parents.When Theron put it to him that his version about receiving an instruction from Erasmus to kill his parents was nothing but a fabrication aimed at getting back at the one remaining member of the group of people who were farming at Kareeboomvloer at the time of the killings, Beukes responded concisely that there was nothing of the sort.”I put it to you that you never received instructions from accused four (Erasmus) to kill his parents,” Theron continued.”I received instructions from Shorty,” Beukes replied.Theron next put it to Beukes that he also did not receive a .38 Special revolver from Erasmus.Through his lawyer, Winnie Christians, Beukes has admitted that he used a .38 Special revolver to shoot dead five of the eight people who were killed at Kareeboomvloer.Beukes also admitted on Thursday that the .38 Special revolver that is part of the evidence before the court is the gun that he used to shoot five of the victims killed at the farm.”I received it from him,” Beukes maintained, referring to the revolver, when questioned by Theron.”When, where, how?” Theron asked.”I will answer that one at a later stage,” Beukes said.That was the same answer that Beukes has given to numerous other questions from Verhoef and Theron.He gave that answer when Theron asked him what specific instructions he was alleging he had received from Erasmus in connection with the revolver that he said Erasmus had supplied to him.The same answer was given when Theron asked him if he was supposed to kill only Erasmus’s parents, and again when Erasmus asked him on what date and at what time he had supposedly received the revolver from Erasmus.Beukes however also confirmed again that he had testified earlier that he had received the revolver from Erasmus to kill the latter’s parents with, and that he was supposed to be paid to carry out that job for Erasmus.All of this testimony was given in a trial within a trial that is supposed to establish whether statements that the Beukes brothers allegedly made to Police officers between the time of their arrest at their home at Rehoboth on the evening of March 6 2005 and their first appearance in court at Mariental on March 9 2005, had been made freely and voluntarily.Judge President Damaseb pointed out on Thursday last week already that evidence given by Beukes in the trial within a trial about Erasmus’s alleged role in the killings cannot be counted as evidence in the main trial of the four charged men.The trial is scheduled to continue this afternoon.Judge President Damaseb, Verhoef, Theron and Christians and the four accused are planning to visit Rehoboth this morning.The purpose of the visit is to establish the distance between the Beukes brothers’ house and the Rehoboth Police Station and to see what route was taken when, according to the Beukeses, they were taken from their house to the Police station and back to the house again on the evening of their arrest.