51 Farm Murders Since Eugene Terre’Blance Was Murdered on His Farm

It is now a year since Mr. Eugene Terre’Blanche has been murdered on his farm. Since then 77 attacks occurred on farms throughout the country in which 51 people were murdered.

During the first quarter of this year, from 1 January to 31 March, 16 farm attacks occurred in which eight farmers were murdered.

TAU SA is doing its best in keeping up to date with these statistics but it is possible that these figures could be even higher.

The farmers who have been murdered this year, are Mr. Kobus van Rooyen, Mrs Wendy Wilken, Mr. Deon van Staden, Mrs. Babs Strecker, Ms Georgie Jacklin, Mr. Frik Hermann, Mr. French Eric Powell, and Mr. Alberto Costa.

“This means that on average more than six farm attacks occur every month, and that on average more than four farmers have been murdered monthly, on the basis of the statistics of the last year,” said Mr Henk van de Graaf, Assistant General Manager of TAU SA.

The President of TAU SA, Mr. Ben Marais says that these statistics are alarming high. “We reiterate our demand that farm attacks have to be declared are a separate category of crime and need to be investigated as such. Farm attacks are not ordinary crime, and should be investigated by experts, especially to determine the real motives behind it. ”

TAU SA is of the opinion that songs such as Julius Malema’s song “Shoot the farmers”, has an effect on this behavior. In view of the court case against Malema on April 11, 2011, TAU SA is doing a survey on the perception of the public about the impact of Malema’s call. The public is asked to take part in an opinion poll on this issue and to complete a questionnaire before 9 April 2011. The questionnaire is available at TAU SA’s website.

[Editor’s Note: You can read earlier articles about Eugene Terreblanche’s murder here and here.]

Johannes Senekal, 70, Murdered

FarmITracker, March 30, 2011

Police investigating the murder-scene of 70-year-old smallholder Johannes Senekal in Roodepoort on 21 March, refused to open a murder-docket: claiming there had been ‘no crime’. Yet the murder suspect–the now duly arrested casual worker Jabulani Khambuli, 23, of Diepsloot–stood right next to the investigating police team with a scratched face–and they never asked the worker any questions.

Mr Senekal was murdered in the double-story smallholding home of his niece, Magdel Daniel and her husband Kobus on March 21 2011. The Daniel couple were in Warmbaths (‘Bela-Bela’) at the time: another worker phoned them and warned that ‘Uncle Boetie wasn’t breathing any longer’. The Daniel couple phoned the police, paramedics and neighbours. They told Beeld newspaper that the worker who alerted them had become suspicious because the lights weren’t on, and Mr Senekal was lying half underneath his bed with cuts to his chin–and electronic equipment was strewn all around him. Missing were his two cellphones, his wallet and a camera.

Mr Daniel was phoned back by the police upon the arrival of the two investigating officers, a sergeant and a captain: who informed them that there ‘had been no crime’ and “that they would not be opening a murder-investigation docket.”

The police sergeant allegedly said in this telephone conversation that “there were ‘no signs of any struggle or forced entry-signs at the house; that they refused to open a murder-investigation docket; and that they would not let the coroner remove the body.’

The Daniel-couple immediately rushed back to Roodepoort–and discovered that casual worker Khambuli had been ‘painting’ at the house when it was a holiday, yet that he had most definitely not been asked to work that day. The couple contacted the private detective-agency of ex-SAPS detectives Bushie Engelbrecht and Piet Byleveld, who launched an independent investigation.

Questioning of witnesses revealed that the suspected murderer had been standing at the murder-scene with scratch-marks on his face, and yet the police never questioned him.

Khambuli was arrested the following Thursday-afternoon and made a full confession in front of a Roodepoort magistrate, who postponed the murder-case to 5 April for a bail-application. Meanwhile Beeld was given the undertaking by the police’s provincial PRO Lt.kol. Lungelo Dlamini that ‘an internal investigation will be launched into the handling of the case by the two police members at the scene’. A memorial service wase held for the murdered man in the NG church Muldersdrift on March 30 2011.