When Sizzler’s mass murderer Adam Woest came face to face with the sole survivor and some families of his victims more than two decades after the killings, he told them he had always had a deep-rooted desire.
This week at the parole process, survivor Quinton Taylor and the victims' families hoped for answers and joined forces to oppose Woest’s second attempt to be granted parole.
In January 2003, Woest and his co-accused Trevor Theys stormed into the Sizzler’s gay massage parlour in Sea Point where they tied up the men, shot them and slit their throats. Taylor survived a bullet to the head.
Warren Visser, Sergio de Castro, Stephanus Fouche, Johan Meyer, Gregory Berghau, Travis Reade, Timothy Boyd, Marius Meyer and owner Aubrey Otgaar were killed.
The motive behind the killings at the time was believed to be a botched robbery.
Woest, along with Theys, a taxi driver, was convicted and sentenced on nine counts of murder, attempted murder, robbery, and the possession of ammunition.
Theys died in prison in 2008.
In March 2016, Woest was eligible for parole but did not meet the requirements.
Minister of Justice and Correctional Services Ronald Lamola instructed Woest to serve another 24 months to undergo psychotherapy with a psychologist to address his schizoid and personality disorder and to trace the victims for the Victim-Offender Dialogue (VOD).
On Thursday, the day finally arrived for the dialogue at the Kgosi Mampuru Correctional Centre, in Pretoria, where Visser’s sister, Leigh, Taylor and other family members took part in a gruelling eight-hour interrogation of Woest.
Leigh said Woest told them he had always desired to kill, showed no remorse for his actions, and did not accept responsibility.
“Firstly, Adam Woest, continues to lie. He was never honest from the beginning about the motive and why. In the beginning, it was stated it was a robbery gone wrong. Today, we heard a very different story.
“He believed that Sizzler’s was an establishment where they targeted (trafficked) minors, which was untrue. His statement was that he felt they were criminals, so he needed to take them out.
“But as we questioned him more, we started catching him in lies, and one of the big things he had told us, not only this new motive that nobody heard before. He told us that he always had this deep-rooted desire to kill and harm people.
“He said he had these desires to kill and harm people for many years before the Sizzler’s murders. He kind of justified it, that he was bullied in school. He keeps deflecting the blame, it has become evident that he lacks the capacity to take accountability for these crimes.”
Visser said Woest kept insisting that he would apologise at the end, but an apology never came.
She said that if he was granted parole “he is going to live with his mother in George and that he has a job already lined up, he will be fine and he won’t commit (a crime) again.
“The day was good, it was evident Woest’s so called rehabilitation has done him no good, he is not remorseful and he continues to deflect the blame. The small win is, if we can see, how will any psychotherapist or parole board not see that?”
Tania Koen, the legal representative of one of the relatives and Taylor, said Taylor had a calm over him when he came face to face with Woest.
“Quinton said he expected it to be hard, but he felt strong because he had the support of the victims’ families. He didn’t feel alone. Some families were linked electronically from around the world, which made a difference for Quinton.
“The important thing for Quinton is that he feels this man is an absolute danger to society and must never be released.
“For all who were present, they felt that Woest showed no remorse or empathy for his actions and did not tender an apology, they feel he can re-offend if he is ever released.”
Lauren Buddie, Otgaar’s niece, said Woest had attempted to paint himself as a martyr who wanted to rid the world of evil and criminals.
“No one could have prepared us for this. He said he thought everyone who had worked at Sizzler’s was doing drugs and that underage boys were being kept there, and that he would override their wrongs and go after other criminals. He also tried to place the blame on Theys.
“He said he had wanted to kill, and he could have done so inside prison.
“He looked fairly healthy and had gained weight inside prison. He is a psychopath and cannot be rehabilitated.”
Neil van der Merwe, Warren’s cousin, said they questioned Woest about the outcome of his therapy.
“I asked what he had learnt from his psychotherapy. He said not to kill again. I would fear for the lives of the LGBTQ community and others on the streets of South Africa if he must be released.”
Koen said the minister would instruct the parole board to set another date or make a recommendation or that the offender must go for an evaluation.
Candice van Reenen and Singabahko Nxumalo of the Department of Correctional Services said they could not discuss internal procedures.
Several attempts to contact Woest' family were unsuccessful.