Pretoria – The Danish daughter of Preben Povlsen, who was stabbed more than 40 times and killed in his Gordon’s Bay home a few years ago, has placed an obstacle in the way of the release from prison of the millionaire businessman’s much younger wife.
Maria Povlsen, who was in her twenties when her 71-year-old husband was murdered, has spent the last four years in the Johannesburg Women’s Prison for her role in the killing.
It was found that she assisted the killer, former Ugandan child soldier Francis Kimeze, to get rid of the evidence.
This included removing a bloody carpet and replacing it with a new one.
Kimize was sentenced to 25 years imprisonment in March 2013, while she received an eight-year effective sentence after she was convicted of being an accessory to the murder.
Maria was due to be released on parole on Thursday after serving four years of her eight-year sentence.
Joan Kjaergaard, Preben’s daughter from a previous marriage, approached the Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, on the eve of her stepmother’s release.
She obtained an urgent order in which the chairman of the Johannesburg Parole Board and Management of the Johannesburg Central Prison were interdicted from releasing Maria on parole.
This was pending an application by Kjaergaard within 21 days, in which she will ask the court to review and set aside the decision by the prison and parole authorities to release Maria on parole.
Maria is an Ugandan national, who is scheduled to be deported back to her country of origin as soon as she is released from prison.
Kjaergaard, on the other hand, said she heard rumours that Maria would stay on in Gordon’s Bay.
Lawyer John Riley issued an affidavit to court on behalf of the daughter, who is taking care of her step siblings in Denmark.
Kjaergaard said she heard rumours that her stepmother was due to be released this week via friends in the country.
She was, however, never informed by the parole board about this decision, nor was she asked to give input regarding the release, as called for in law.
Riley confirmed that Maria had indeed been informed of her release on Thursday.
He was also told that the officials could not undo that decision and that the only option was to turn to court.
Preben’s family are against Maria’s early release, as the children, who witnessed the killing, were still severely traumatised.
They also fear harm from her if she came back, they said.
Maria’s brother Kimeze was charged for the murder of the elderly Danish millionaire on January 14, 2008.
Kimeze was said to have transported the body in the man’s car to a nearby shopping centre, where it was left in the parking area. The body was later the same day discovered at Blouberg.
The killer told Maria of the killing and she assisted him to conceal the crime, by replacing the bloody carpet in the bedroom.
She later phoned the golf club where he usually played, to “inquire whether he was there, as he had not come home”.
This, the court was told at the time, was after she knew he was dead. She also later reported him missing to the police.
Maria denied her involvement and even appealed her conviction, which was last year turned down.