Attempts by accused serial killer and six-time rape accused Johan Williams to derail search efforts of his alleged victim’s friends and family had the opposite effect when he continued telephonic communication with them.
On Wednesday at the Western Cape High Court, new witnesses came to testify in the murder trial against Williams, including the family and a friend of Maria Isaacs – one of his three alleged murder victims – who was last seen alive on June 16, 2018.
Isaacs’ cousin, Magdalene Isaacs, told the court that after having resigned from a previous job in 2017 in Malmesbury, where the two worked together, Isaacs was excited to again have a job opportunity when a “friend” supposedly organised a job for her in Touwsriver.
Magdalene said her cousin was excited to be able to contribute to the household again where her mother was the breadwinner.
In her testimony, she told the court that Isaacs asked for a ride to Wellington police station where the friend was to meet with her. They were to travel to Touwsriver where Isaacs was supposed to have started her new job.
“When I dropped Maria off, we sat and chatted a bit while we waited at the police station, where I asked her about the new job. She said a friend had arranged it for her and it was an admin post. At that time I was unaware of who the friend was. While we sat and chatted, her phone rang and I heard a male voice saying ‘nog vandag nog Maria (today still Maria)’.
“I was taken aback, because we weren’t late as we had sat and waited where Maria had been told to wait.
“When the man approached, Maria introduced me to Johan as the friend who had organised the job for her. I still told him that if anything happened to Maria, he would have to deal with me. He said ‘ek sal met my groot trok oor jou bakkie ry’ (I will drive over your bakkie with my big truck). At that time, I took it as a joke. They then left on foot, as Johan said they still needed to buy food at Spar. That was the last time I saw Maria,” Magdalene said.
Hours after having dropped Isaacs off, Magdalene said she called her cousin to make sure she was okay.
“When I called, a man picked up the phone and it was Johan. He said Maria was in the shower at that time.
I said I would call back later but when I did just after 10pm, I got no answer,” she said.
According to Magdalene, incessant calls in an attempt to speak to Isaacs in the week that followed had either not been answered, or Williams answered, telling them that she was busy, despite their receiving texts from her requesting money.
During court proceedings, Magdalene was asked to identify a number of clothing items. These included the clothes which Isaacs was found buried in and which she had last seen Isaacs wearing.
Items included a watch which Isaacs received as a farewell gift from her previous job.
Earlier this week, the court heard that Williams gifted his neighbour a watch for giving him “moral support” during a rough patch he and his girlfriend were experiencing.
Friend and colleague of the slain Isaacs, Anna Nobangela, also took the witness stand and told the court how she became suspicious when Isaacs had not answered any of her calls personally.
Nobangela told the court they were very close friends that chatted via text daily.
Nobangela became emotional in the dock, recounting the events that led up to the day when police arrived and confirmed that Isaacs’ body was found.
Williams faces a total of 20 criminal charges, including three counts of murder, six counts of rape and six counts of kidnapping. Williams, who pleaded not guilty to the charges against him, pointed police to his victims’ burial sites hours after his arrest.
Cape Times