Johannesburg - The distance between murder co-accused Maruschka Robinson and JP Malan on Monday was physical and emotional.
Their interaction in court was a far cry from when they first appeared in court over the murder of Dustan Blom.
Then they seemed mutually supportive. Occasionally, they would be seen holding hands, and would usually be standing in the dock just a few centimetres apart.
But when their trial was set to start in the high court sitting in the Palm Ridge Magistrate’s Court on Monday, it was a different story altogether.
The Star has learnt that the pair, who are accused of murdering Blom, dumping his body in the boot of his car and leaving it in the Montecasino mall parking lot, are blaming each other for the crime.
A source close to the investigation said each insisted that the other was responsible for the plot to kill Blom, who was last seen in September last year with Robinson, a former stripper at the Lollipop lounge.
The awkwardness between the pair was obvious on Monday, with Robinson not making eye contact with her co-accused and choosing to sit as far as she could from Malan.
Wearing a black, sheer-shouldered top with a floral design, she sat with her body turned away from her ex-boyfriend, while he sat and stared ahead during the short proceedings.
While the trial had been set down for more than three weeks, seasoned State prosecutor Zaais van Zyl told the court that another case was also set down for the same court on the same day, and indicated it should take priority over that of Robinson and Malan.
The pair’s trial will now begin on October 27.
Blom was found dead in the boot of his car at Montecasino last September. It appeared as if he had been left there for at least two days after he went missing from a restaurant in Olivedale.
At the couple’s appearance in the Randburg Magistrate’s Court earlier this year, the State said Blom had been strangled at home before being bundled into his own car.
State prosecutor Yusuf Baba told the court at the time that Blom had been arrested on a drunken driving charge on May 25 last year and had given his account details to Robinson - a supposed friend - to “assist him” by bailing him out.
The card and banking details were then allegedly passed on to Malan, and a series of scams began that left Blom hundreds of thousands of rand out of pocket.
Another four accused were also prosecuted in relation to the case - not for the murder, but for abusing Blom’s bank account and allegedly defrauding him of more than R120 000.
The Star