The Western Cape High Court sitting in Vredendal has sentenced Daniel Smit to life imprisonment for the murder of 13-year-old Jerobejin van Wyk, saying he acted with brazen impunity.
Smit was further sentenced on Monday to 15 years for attempted murder, ten years for kidnapping, five years for violating a corpse and three years imprisonment for defeating the ends of justice. The sentences will run concurrently.
Judge Hayley Slingers also ordered that the 58-year-old should not be eligible for parole until he has served two-thirds of his sentence.
Smit was also deemed unfit to possess a firearm.
Smit killed Jerobejin at his Klawer home in February 2022 after chasing the boy and his friend accusing them of stealing mangoes from his property.
He managed to catch Jerobejin, kidnap, butcher him and dispose of the body by dismembering and burning some parts of it. Smit threw some parts down the sewer drain and hid other parts in an oil drum.
“He was confident that he had successfully disposed of the deceased's body, inviting the police who visited his premises to bring the detectives and the dogs.
“He did not think he would be in custody long, telling his daughter he would be able to fetch her within a day or two of his arrest. He forgot that he had hidden body parts in the blue drum.
“The above actions are consistent with the actions of a person who throughout acted in a calculated manner. There was no loss of self-restraint and control. On the contrary the above actions were calculated and the actions of a person very much in control,” said Judge Slingers.
In a heartbreaking letter to the court last week, Jerobejin’s mother, Triesa van Wyk spoke of the agony she has been in since her son’s brutal murder.
“After considering the accused, the crime and the interests of society together with the objectives of punishment, I have not been convinced that there are compelling and substantial reasons to deviate from the prescribed minimum sentence,” said Slingers.
National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Eric Ntabazalila welcomed the sentence and said they had worked hard to ensure justice for Jerobejin and his family.
“We are happy that we got him convicted on attempted murder instead of the reckless driving charge he pleaded guilty to.
“We were also happy that we got a conviction on premeditated murder instead of murder which secured life imprisonment.
“We are also happy we were able to prove to the court that this death had nothing to do with him being a member of a cult or satanism but actions of a criminal who cruelly killed a child who he alleged stole a fruit,” said Ntabazalila.
He said they hoped the sentence sends a clear message that crimes of this nature will not be tolerated and the best resources will be allocated to ensure a sentence fitting the crime.
“In this case we had Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions in the Western Cape, Advocate Louise Freister-Sampson prosecuting this case.
This was to demonstrate to the community of Vredendal that we take this case very seriously,” he added. Western Cape police commissioner Thembisile Patekile lauded the efforts by the investigating officer Theo J. Maarman attached the Vredendal Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit, and all who played a vital role to ensure the lengthy sentence.
Cape Times