CAPE TOWN - Accused murderer and alleged cultist Daniel Smit allegedly fed Jerobejin Van Wyk before brutally murdering the boy in an alleged pre-planned occult ritual by burning his body among tar poles “which provided the right temperature”.
Smit, who appeared at the Klawer Magistrates Court on Tuesday, will be referred for a psychiatric evaluation after harrowing details relating to the murder emerged.
Psychologist CWA van Zyl noted that Smit should be sent for psychiatric evaluation so he may be assessed “for scientific reasons for his horrific act”, which he had allegedly committed as he was “sick and tired of theft, beggars, and disrespect in his community”.
It emerged that Smit, after he had knocked Jerobejin down with his bakkie for allegedly stealing fruit, took the teenager back to his home, where he had given the boy food and something to drink before “breaking his neck”.
“His state of mind when he did commit the murder consists out of different stages, which might indicate the ‘perfect storm’ before the horrific crime. He (saw) two minors in his yard, apparently stealing fruit. The one minor, Jerobejin, was mocking him, after which he lost control and chased the minor in his vehicle.
“He apparently bumped Jerobejin and pulls him into his vehicle and takes him to his home, knowing very well that people will know about the incident. In his home, he apparently gives him bread and cool drink and then breaks his neck,” Van Zyl’s report read.
Thereafter, apparently unbeknown to Smit’s 20-year-old daughter, who was at home with him at the time but had not witnessed anything, Smit stored Jerobejin in a standing freezer before he and his daughter headed to Vredendal, “conducting business as usual”.
“On returning home, she made supper. After which, he gave her sleeping tablets to give him the opportunity to conduct a pre-planned ritual. He took the corpse, dismembered it, and burn(ed) his body parts in his fireplace, where tar poles provide(d) the needed temperature to burn out the body parts.
“The body parts that did not burn out was (thrown) in the septic tank of the sewage system, later detected by the municipality workers,” noted Van Zyl.
Further to Van Zyl’s report, Smit had admitted in his initial statement that he had been involved in occult rituals since he was 13 years old, and the participation thereof “gives him power and control and justification for his actions”.
Van Zyl’s report also stated that when Smit gets emotionally upset, he would “experience the taste of sulphur and iron, headache, uncontrollable sense to act, experience a trance-like state of state of mind and goes into a different dimension”.
National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Eric Ntabazalila said Smit could face further charges as the investigation continues.
Smit currently faces charges of murder, attempted murder, kidnapping, defeating the administration of justice and failure to report an accident to the police.
“DNA report, two witness statements, cellphone plotting analysis and crime scene are still outstanding. The defence applied for its client to be referred to Valkenberg Psychiatric Hospital for observation. The State did not oppose the application,” said Ntabazalila.
The case was postponed to May 23 for the 30-day observation and June 27 for further investigation.
Cape Times