Syndicate allegedly behind Blom murder

Progam from Dustan Blom funeral. HIs boday was found in the boot of a car at Monte Casino last week. 011013. Picture: Handout/Supplied

Progam from Dustan Blom funeral. HIs boday was found in the boot of a car at Monte Casino last week. 011013. Picture: Handout/Supplied

Published Nov 13, 2013

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Johannesburg - While Dustan Blom’s body was decomposing in the boot of his car in the Montecasino parking lot, some of the men who had allegedly defrauded him were gambling inside the same casino with their victim’s money.

It’s also been revealed that these men - and the man accused of Blom’s murder, JP Malan - may be part of a syndicate that has defrauded several other victims in similar ways.

Blom was found in the boot of his car on September 22, after security noticed a smell coming from the vehicle that had been parked there for several days.

Two suspects, Maruschka Robinson and Malan, were arrested for the murder, but another four suspects appeared on Tuesday at the Randburg Magistrate’s court on charges of defrauding Blom of almost R120 000.

At Tuesday’s appearance, it was also revealed that at least one other suspect, believed to be the syndicate’s kingpin, was still being sought.

Brothers Louis and Hein Coetzee, Ian Manyika and Alex de Kooker were set to apply for bail on Tuesday and during proceedings details of how each of the men were linked to Blom’s credit card were revealed.

According to state prosecutor Yusuf Baba, the card was in the hands of each of the accused between September 18 and 27 and revealed an extensive list of transactions.

On September 18, Manyika and a suspect believed to be Malan were caught on CCTV cameras withdrawing money at an ATM in Strydom Park.

Manyika admitted this in his own statement to the court, but said that Malan had called him and asked him to withdraw the money with the card. He claimed not to know that its owner was dead.

Robinson and Malan were also caught using the card on two other occasions, before it ended up in the hands of the Coetzee brothers.

On September 21, they used the card to withdraw tens of thousands of rand at OR Tambo International Airport.

However, on September 22, the day in which Blom’s body was discovered, the brothers were making huge withdrawals at Montecasino to use for gambling. They then met Manyika and another unknown male before making further withdrawals.

The card was also used by De Kooker, who used it to book a room at Montecasino’s Palazzo Hotel and to rent a car. His room later revealed he was in possession of false ID documents that could be linked to other fraudulent activities.

Overall, the group withdrew R119 000, despite trying to withdraw more than R285 000.

A list of other credit cards found throughout the police investigation have led investigators to believe the group may be responsible for other fraud cases across Gauteng.

Joe Strauss, representing the Coetzees, said his clients had been ordered by their “employer” to use the credit card and make the withdrawals, and that the owner of the credit card, Blom, had given them permission to use it. Strauss also revealed the employer of the Coetzees and Manyika is still an outstanding suspect.

While De Kooker abandoned his bail application on Tuesday, the other three men denied being part of a syndicate in their written statements to the court. Louis Coetzee’s bail bid was denied because of a pending case in Germiston, but both Manyika and Hein Coetzee were granted bail of R10 000.

However, their legal representatives said that neither could afford to pay such sums.

It still remains unclear if the four suspects are linked to the murder itself, but they will be appearing in court alongside Robinson and Malan on January 16.

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The Star

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