Online Reporter
Thupeyo Muleya, Beitbridge Bureau
The trial of a South African farmer and his two employees accused of killing two women, among them a Zimbabwean, and feeding their bodies to pigs has begun at the Mankweng Magistrates’ Court in Limpopo Province.
The accused, Zachariah Olivier (60), a farm owner, and his workers Adriaan De Wet (19) and William Musoro (45), a Zimbabwean national, were arrested following the gruesome murders committed in August last year.
National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) regional spokesperson for the Limpopo Division, Ms Mashudu Dzhangi-Malabi, said the trial will run from October 6 to 17.
She said the accused are facing two counts of murder, one count of attempted murder, possession of an unlicensed firearm and ammunition, defeating the ends of justice, and contravention of the Immigration Act — the latter in respect of Musoro, who is alleged to be an illegal immigrant.
“The trial of the pig farmer double murder case will resume in the Limpopo Polokwane High Court. Farm owner Zachariah Olivier and his employees, Rudolph De Wet and William Musora, allegedly shot and killed Maria Makgato and Lucia Ndlovu before dumping their bodies in a pigsty at Onvervaght Farm in Sebayeng,” said Ms Dzhangi-Malabi.
She said the State was ready to proceed with the matter and that accused number two, De Wet, had turned State witness under Section 204 of the Criminal Procedure Act.
The trio was arrested after police discovered the decomposed bodies of Makgato and Ndlovu in a pigsty at the farm on 20 August last year.
Ndlovu’s body was later repatriated and buried in Zimbabwe with assistance from the country’s embassy in South Africa.
It is understood that the arrests followed a detailed investigation by the Provincial Tracking Team and the Murder and Robbery Unit.
According to Limpopo police, investigations began when a 45-year-old South African woman went missing after visiting the farm on 17 August, accompanied by a 35-year-old foreign national woman.
Both women sustained gunshot wounds, while Ndlovu’s 47-year-old husband, who was with them, was also shot and hospitalised.
