Partner, tenants appear in court over murder of Nelson Mandela Bay businessman

A courtroom packed with the loved ones of a brutally killed Gqeberha businessman looked on as one of the accused launched into what appeared to be a full confession of a murder plot. 

However, the presiding officer cut his admission short on Monday morning, telling him that a first court appearance was not the time or place for discussing the matter in such detail.

Instead, the trio accused of killing 65-year-old Danie de Jager in his Newton Park home on 30 October will return to court on Thursday, where a date will be decided for their formal bail application.

De Jager’s partner, Estelle le Grange, 57, and the couple who rented a flat on the property, Leeroy Scholtz and Anke Cilliers, both 36, were arrested within hours of De Jager’s murder.

Standing in the dock in front of a public gallery filled with De Jager’s family members, Scholtz and Cilliers repeatedly tried to hold each other, despite court orderlies ordering them not to.

As proceedings got underway, Scholtz raised his hand, and when the magistrate allowed him to speak, he began telling the court who was behind orchestrating the murder of De Jager.

Interrupted

The magistrate quickly interrupted Scholtz and advised him to discuss the case with an attorney before making any submissions to the court.

Scholtz and Cilliers applied for representation from Legal Aid SA, while Le Grange appointed well-known criminal defence attorney Alwyn Griebenow as her legal representative.

De Jager’s family watched proceedings intently. When asked for comment outside the courtroom, they declined, saying they did not wish to jeopardise the investigation.  

De Jager owned Siyalungisa Manufacturing and specialised in the building and installation of air-conditioning and ventilation systems.

He was also well known in classic car circles for his involvement in the restoration of antique vehicles.

According to initial reports, Le Grange claimed a loud noise woke her up in the Mangold Street house in the early hours of the morning.

Read more: Two women arrested after Gqeberha man stabbed to death in Newton Park home invasion

She claimed that upon investigation, she was confronted by four unknown men who tied her up and placed a pillowcase over her head before ransacking the house.

She told police that she had managed to free herself and found De Jager unresponsive with multiple injuries. His Nissan Juke was missing.

Police confirmed that De Jager died on the scene, that he had suffered various injuries, but the cause of death was attributed to stab wounds to his upper body.

Further investigation raised questions among detectives and private security operatives who had responded to the incident.

Red flag

A source close to the investigation said there were signs of damage to a garage door at the front of the house, and a small window towards the back of the home had been broken and identified as a possible point of entry.

However, a red flag was raised when investigators allegedly found that much of the window’s broken glass was on the outside of the house, indicating that the window was smashed from the inside.

In the hours following the incident, private security firm City Wide Security assisted the police in tracking the movements of De Jager’s stolen Nissan Juke, using security cameras belonging to the Central Specials Rates Association and the Mandela Bay Development Agency.

“Through the use of Sniper Licence Plate Recognition systems, we were able to track the vehicle as it moved through Central and Humewood, and where it was ultimately found in Westbourne Road,” City Wide director Stephen Moore said.

He said that from the vehicle’s movements, and keen investigation from the police units involved, they were also able to recover what they believed to be the murder weapon, which had been tossed over a property’s wall at an undisclosed location along the route.

It was also initially stated that Scholtz and Cilliers were not home at the time of the incident, but they were unable to give a satisfactory explanation of their whereabouts and caved in under police questioning, ultimately testifying to their alleged roles in De Jager’s murder. DM