Cape Town – Possession of dagga charges against axe murder accused Henri van Breda and his girlfriend Danielle Janse van Rensburg were withdrawn in the Cape Town Magistrate's Court on Tuesday.
The State withdrew the case based on merit, the court heard.
There were no conditions set on the withdrawal of charges against Van Breda, but his girlfriend was ordered to attend sessions with a psychologist based on recommendations made by the National Institute for Crime Prevention and the Reintegration of Offenders (Nicro).
Van Breda’s lawyer Pieter Botha said: “Charges against my client were withdrawn on merits of the matter. The Directorate of Prosecutions, after studying the docket, found that there were no merits for the charges as my client has been saying all along.”
Botha said the recommendations made by Nicro were not irregular.
“Nothing extraordinary happened against accused number two,” he said.
Last year the couple was arrested by Table View police.
Van Breda was released on R1 000 bail and Janse van Rensburg on R200 bail.
Before taking the stand in the dock the couple had been sitting together in the front row in the gallery.
The couple held hands throughout their appearance and kept their eyes locked on each other throughout.
Van Breda is expected to appear at the Western Cape High Court for the continuation of his murder trial on April 24. He is accused of murdering his parents and his older brother in the family’s luxury De Zalze estate home in Stellenbosch in January 2015.