Kimberley - A 22-year-old man appeared in the Kimberley Magistrate’s Court on two charges of culpable homicide following an accident in which two teenagers died at the notorious N12 “crossing of death” just outside the city.
The accident happened in 2014 and sparked a public outcry with city residents and groups calling for the crossing at the Kalahari Lodge on the N12 to be made safer.
Since the 2014 incident, several other accidents have been reported at the same spot, some resulting in fatalities.
The State alleges that the accused, Henco Boshoff, failed to obey a stop sign at the R31 and N12 crossing, just outside Kimberley, causing an accident that resulted in the deaths of Chara van Zyl and Hendré Gouws.
A truck smashed into the vehicle that Boshoff was driving, leaving Gouws dead on the scene while Van Zyl died in hospital several hours later. They were both sitting in the back of the vehicle.
Boshoff’s brother, Duart, survived the accident.
At the time of the incident, which occurred on July 11 2014, Van Zyl was a learner at Diamantveld High School while Gouws and the Boshoff brothers were former learners of the school.
On Friday, Boshoff made his first appearance in court, where a trial date was arranged for the July holidays, as his legal representative indicated that he was a student at the University of the Free State and would then be available to stand trial.
The State indicated that the investigation was completed and that the case was ready for trial.
Boshoff was warned to return to court again on July 11, when the trial is expected to commence.
While several of Boshoff’s family members were in court to support him, Van Zyl’s father, Cornel van Zyl, also attended proceeding and afterwards told the DFA that he was “struggling tremendously” to come to grips with his daughter’s death.
“She was my only biological daughter and heir and I am struggling to accept her death. It is like my life has lost any meaning or sense. It has been a very difficult time for me,” he said.
DFA