Nelspruit man charged with grandmother’s murder

JJ Peters (25) was arrested on Tuesday for the murder of Sannie Strydom Kilmister (68) – his grandmother. Kilmister was killed in the early hours of Monday morning.

A provincial police spokesperson, Brigadier Selvy Mohlala, confirmed that Peters had been taken in for questioning on Monday, and eventually admitted to being involved in the murder on Tuesday.

He made certain confessions to the investigating officer and his statement was taken down by a senior police official and was arrested shortly afterwards. Later the same day, Peters appeared in the Nelspruit Magistrate’s Court briefly, and a magistrate confirmed his confession.

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“God-fearing and deeply religious”, is how friends described Kilmister this week. She is the mother of a well-known business owner. Peters is his son.

She was murdered in the early hours of Monday. She was apparently strangled, allegedly by Peters, who had been sharing her house on a smallholding in the Cromdale area, about six kilometres outside the city on the R40, towards Barberton.

Albert Gryvenstein of Bossies Community Justice said he was called out to the scene at about 04:00.

Gryvenstein, a good friend of the family, said Kilmister had been found dead in her bedroom with various bruise marks on her neck. Splashes of blood were also found on a pillow in the room.

It was originally thought that someone had broken into the house and murdered the pensioner.

According to a friend of the family, who requested not to be named, Peters was allegedly a “very troubled young man.” This claim could not be confirmed independently by Lowvelder.

On February 22, three days before celebrating his 25th birthday, Peters posted a message on his Facebook page saying, “Sorry to those offended by this broken heart and ill mind. Very nasty side I saw of myself. Professional counsaling (sic) and prescribed Bipolar medication has been ordered.”

This week, none of the Kilmister family wanted to comment on the murder.

Peters was formally charged with murder, malicious damage to property and defeating the ends of justice in court on Wednesday.