Defence lawyer Graham van der Spuy yesterday read murder-accused Jason Rodhe’s recollection of the evening before his wife Susan was found dead in the bathroom of the hotel room at the Spier Wine Estate.
Today, concludes the cross-examination of the State’s second witness, forensic pathologist Akmal Coetzee-Khan, in the murder trial.
Van der Spuy read how events unfolded on the July 23 last year during an annual company conference.
“Jason avoided his wife and Jolene for the most part of the evening. (Susan) danced with other delegates in a provocative manner. She watched Jason and Jolene the entire evening,” Van der Spuy read.
In his plea explanation, Jason admitted to an extramarital affair with Cape Town-based colleague Jolene Alterskye.
According to the testimony, after the Saturday event concluded, about 25 people moved to the bar outside the conference venue, where the couple had social drinks before the bar closed.
“On their way back to their hotel room, they passed two young employees who invited Jason to the after-party. Jason said ‘yes, for sure’ and Susan said no f****** way,” Van der Spuy further read.
When they got to hotel room, Susan changed into “just a bathrobe”.
“Jason wanted to send Jolene a text message and he went into the bathroom to do that. Susan saw him (trying to send the message) and Jason tried to delete the message.
"That’s when the explosion erupted. Susan went ballistic,” Van der Spuy said.
Details of a confrontation and heated exchanges ensued and Van der Spuy read how Jason tried to leave the hotel room with Susan blocking him from doing so.
He said as Jason tried to leave, Susan became physical by pulling at his collar and restrained him, trying to block him from leaving.
During the scuffle in an attempt to leave the hotel room, Jason said he swung his arms and it connected with her face and “at that he was able leave the room”.
Jason eventually got to a room where Jolene and two other people were, all the while being followed by Susan, who was “angry, irrational and very aggressive”.
The following morning, Jason said he found his wife hanging from the bathroom door by an electric cord.
Jason pleaded not guilty to killing his wife and defeating the ends of justice by staging a suicide.