Cape Town - Kyle Maspero, the teen accused of murdering the mother of his girlfriend Phoenix Racing Cloud Theron, wants to plead guilty, the Western Cape High Court heard.
However, it is likely he will be tried instead, because the state disputes the version of events he intends presenting when he pleads.
The 18-year-old youngster stood calmly in the dock beside co-accused Godfrey Scheepers on Friday, when he made his second high court appearance for a pre-trial conference in connection with the murder last year.
Scheepers, 20, is accused of helping to move Rosemary Theron’s body.
On Friday State advocate Susan Galloway told Judge Robert Henney that Maspero intended to plead guilty, but added that the court may have to enter a plea of not guilty if the State’s rejected his version of events.
If a plea of not guilty is entered, a trial will proceed.
There will however only be certainty on the issue on the scheduled trial date next month. Earlier this month, Maspero’s girlfriend Theron, 19, was sentenced to an effective 15 years in jail after she entered into a plea bargain with the State.
She admitted to her role in the murder of her mother, blaming her for neglecting her.
She said she had learnt to steal food when she was hungry, was often taken out of school because her mother could not afford it, and had to take care of her baby sister.
She implicated Maspero in the murder, saying that she held her mother’s arms while he strangled her.
According to Theron, the couple came up with the plan to murder Rosemary, a performance artist, following an argument.
Theron pretended to apologise for the fight to her mother, and embraced her while Maspero allegedly sneaked up behind her, strangling her with a rope.
She alleged that Maspero buried the body near their Fish Hoek home, and that he later, with the help of Scheepers, moved it to the sand dunes at Strandfontein. - Weekend Argus