Apartheid cop awaits his fate

The defence attorney for former apartheid police officer Johan Marais, who was found guilty in November of the 1987 murder of Daveyton student activist Caiphus Nyoka, said she hopes that by next month, the outstanding psychological report will be complete, allowing the case to proceed.

Marais (65), of Springs, briefly appeared in the Pretoria High Court on March 25, which delayed his sentencing proceedings due to the pending report.

During his previous court appearance, the court provisionally postponed the matter so the defence could report to the court on the progress of the psychological report. However, it was revealed that the report was not yet finalised.

Judge Papi Mosopa cited concerns that Marais had been coming to court for a long time due to several postponements, while the State indicated it was prepared to proceed once it received the report.

The court postponed the case to April 14 for sentencing proceedings and extended Marais’ bail (he is out on bail of R5 000) on the condition that he does not interfere with State witnesses or communicate with his co-accused.

Nyoka was a prominent leader of the Congress of South African Students in Daveyton and the co-ordinator for Transco East Rand. Members of a police unit allegedly established to ‘deal’ with terrorism fatally shot him.

Marais admitted responsibility for Nyoka’s killing on August 24, 1987, which led to an early judgment following his plea.

During court proceedings in November, Marais’ attorney read a statement detailing how Marais unlawfully and intentionally killed Nyoka by shooting him with a firearm.

“The deceased was opposed to the apartheid government and frequently challenged its discriminatory policies. His involvement in educational and local politics saw him identified as a threat to the apartheid regime,” the statement read.

The trial of his co-accused, Leon Louis van den Berg, Abram Hercules Engelbrecht and Pieter Stander, also former apartheid policemen, continues in May in a High Court sitting at the Benoni Magistrate’s Court.

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