Cape Town - Stellenbosch detectives have yet again secured another major success with the conviction and subsequent sentencing of Jason Rohde in the Western Cape High Court on Wednesday.
He was handed 18 years for the murder of his wife Susan at the Spier Estate in July 2016, and five years for obstructing the course of justice. Two years of the sentence will run concurrently, the accused will serve 20 years in prison.
Western Cape police management have praised both the prosecution and detection teams for the sterling work. The extensive investigation saw detectives employing the services of a police forensic expert to examine the bathroom door to prove that a murder had been committed as opposed to a suicide as previously claimed.
“It is encouraging that as the country battles incidents of gender-based violence we are able to secure the sentence. We trust that the sentence will offer some form of hope to the families of women who have suffered a similar fate,” says the Western Cape Provincial Commissioner, Lt Gen KE Jula.
On behalf of the SAPS, Lt Gen Jula commended the Stellenbosch detective team comprising Sgt Marlon Appolis and Sgt Stephen Adams under the command of Col Deon Beneke, who in 2018 secured convictions and hefty sentences for the following cases:
- Henri van Breda (Murder of van Breda family)
- Geraldo Parsons, Vernon Witbooi, Eben van Niekerk and Nashville Julius (Murder and rape of Hannah Cornelius)
- Jason Rohde (Murder of Susan Rohde)
SAPS said it is remarkable that the same detective team is able to secure convictions and sentences in three major cases from the same area during in such a short period.
@TheCapeArgus
Cape Argus