A Limpopo man accused of orchestrating the gang rape of his estranged wife and of killing her son must be sent for psychiatric evaluation, his lawyer said on Friday.
“The crimes my client is accused of committing are not the normal run-of-the-mill crimes,” JL Meintjies told the Modimolle Magistrate's Court.
He asked that Johan Kotze be sent to Weskoppies Psychiatric Hospital in Pretoria.
Meintjies said November 19 to 30 had been set aside for the trial to start in the High Court in Pretoria.
“Medical records are needed so it can be clear when the trial starts,” he said.
Kotze, 50, Andries Sithole, Peter Mohlako and Sello Frans Mphaka are accused of torturing and raping Kotze's estranged wife Ina Bonette in January this year. Friday was the first time the four appeared in court together.
Kotze hired the three men to work in the garden of his rented home in Modimolle. On January 3 he allegedly forced them at gunpoint to rape his ex-wife and mutilate her with objects including nails, a screwdriver, and an angle-grinder. Kotze also lured his stepson, Conrad, to the house and allegedly shot and killed him.
Conrad's father, grandfather, aunt and uncle sat in the front row of the packed courtroom. The neatly-shaven Kotze wore a yellow checked shirt, blue jeans and a jacket.
A small group of ANC Women's League members stood quietly outside the court, holding posters that read “no bail for murderers and rapists”.
Kotze previously chose not to apply for bail. His co-accused were denied bail after they failed to prove there were exceptional circumstances for them to get it. - Sapa