It was a day spent on the farm rather than inside the air-conditioned Polokwane High Court on Tuesday, as proceedings in the Onverwaght pig farm double murder case shifted to the crime scene.
This followed Judge Jane Ngobeni’s ruling in favour of a crime scene inspection, after an application by Advocate Jacobus Venter, the defence lawyer representing Zachariah Olivier.
Olivier, the 61-year-old owner of the farm, and his employee William Musora, a Zimbabwean national, are accused of the brutal murder of two women — Maria Makgatho (45) and Lucia Ndlovu (35).
The women’s bodies were allegedly thrown into a pigsty after being shot. The pair also face charges of attempted murder of Lucia’s husband, Maputho Ncube. He escaped with gunshot wounds and alerted authorities. The three victims had reportedly gone to the farm to collect leftover food, as they often did.
Fact-finding visit to the farm
Judge Ngobeni, court officials, and both legal teams visited the Onverwaght farm in Sebayeng. The farm is locatedcoutside Polokwane, where the incident occurred on August 17 2024.
During the site visit, Rudolph de Wet demonstrated how the victims were shot. He pointed out where he had allegedly fired his .303 rifle. And he indicated the spot where the second victim’s body was discovered. De Wet (20), is a former co-accused who has since turned state witness.
He also showed where the first victim was found. This is in the same direction, he said, where Olivier had fired his 22 rifle.
After the inspection, Judge Ngobeni noted inconsistencies between Olivier’s earlier testimony and the actual scene.
“The last aspect that I want to place on record: there are no bushes as such,” he remarked.
Inconsistencies in testimony vs crime scene
“It is not a bushy area, though it is not completely clear either. That may be due to the passage of time since the incident. But there are no bushes as described by the accused.”
Olivier had earlier testified that they fired warning shots into nearby bushes to scare off supposed intruders on the night of the shooting.
The court was adjourned after the inspection. It will resume on Wednesday, when Advocate Venter is expected to continue cross-examining De Wet. The next witness to take the stand will be Musora, who in addition to the murder charges, also faces immigration-related offences.
A total of 22 witnesses are expected to testify during the trial.
