CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA – OCTOBER 24: Convicted murderer Henri van Breda during his trial at the Western Cape High Court on October 24, 2017 in Cape Town, South Africa. Van Breda’s neighbour Annelize Taljaard who lived two doors away, said she didn’t hear anything out of the ordinary while three people were being hacked to death.
CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA – OCTOBER 24: Convicted murderer Henri van Breda during his trial at the Western Cape High Court on October 24, 2017 in Cape Town, South Africa. Van Breda’s neighbour Annelize Taljaard who lived two doors away, said she didn’t hear anything out of the ordinary while three people were being hacked to death.
After an intense three-year legal battle, Henri van Breda has been found guilty of killing three of his own family members with an axe.
Judge Siraj Desai announced his decision on Monday. It follows a highly-dramatic court case that took 66 days to conclude. He was found guilty for all three murders.
Henri van Breda verdict
In the build-up to revealing his decision, Desai took several shots at the defence’s case. He stated that there was no evidence of any attempted house break-in as Van Breda had claimed. The judge was also sceptical about Henri’s wounds.
He ruled that they were self-inflicted, as he was trying to cover up the heinous crime he’d committed. Ultimately, Desai admitted that the verdict he has come to was “unavoidable”, finding Van Breda guilty on all charges.
The state also requested that Van Breda’s bail is revoked pending the sentencing, now he’s been found guilty. He will spend the next few months in the Pollsmore prison hospital section, before appearing again in court.
Henri #VanBreda has just been convicted of murdering 3 members of his family and attempting to kill his sister. He is stone faced. pic.twitter.com/Q8DMu4Dzyq
— Tammy Petersen (@TammyPetersen87) May 21, 2018
Tale of the Henri van Breda case:
Defence lawyer Piet Botha previously argued that the house alarm tripped twice on the night. He suggests this confirms the theory that intruders made it onto the property. Security wasn’t “top-notch” at the Van Breda estate, in his words.
The prosecution’s Susan Galloway disparaged the case the van Breda team had put together, raising her suspicions over Henri’s lack of urgency to find help and the inconsistencies regarding forensic evidence.
Desai sided with Galloway, ruling that van Breda had indeed committed these murders. A date for sentencing and further information will be shared when we get it.
