Sabie deaths: Police did not seize St Stithians teenagers’ phones

Serious questions have been raised about the way the police are handling the investigation into the alleged murder-suicide of two teenagers. The bodies of Cameron Waldeck-Cooks (17) and Ethan Coetzee (19) were found in a room at the Waterval Self-Catering Holiday Home near Sabie on August 3.

Guesthouse owner Anton Bezuidenhout, a White River resident, has confirmed that his property is for sale, reports Lowvelder.

Also read: Police investigate deaths of two Gauteng teenagers in Sabie

“After all the false rumours in the media, I’ve decided to sell,” he told the publication on Wednesday. The guesthouse is situated on the Waterval Farm smallholding, about 2km outside Sabie on the Lydenburg Road.

Almost 88 days after the teenagers’ deaths, the police have not contacted Derrick Cooks and Claire Waldeck-Cooks, Cameron’s parents, according to Daniel Witz, a lawyer acting on behalf of the family.

“Except for one call from the investigating officer asking for the contact details of her parents, we have had no feedback from the police,” Witz told Lowvelder on Monday. “Also concerning is the fact that up until now, neither parent was asked to submit a statement or affidavit,” Witz said.

Also read: Mpumalanga police open murder case after deaths of 2 Gauteng teenagers in Sabie

Waldeck-Cooks was a learner at St Stithians Girls’ College, and Coetzee matriculated from St Stithians Boys’ College last year.

Preliminary reports suggest drug overdose

At the time of their deaths, the police suspected that the youngsters died of a drug overdose.

This suspicion was penned in a preliminary crime report compiled by the police.

Lowvelder has seen a copy of the report. At the time, the police were unwilling to confirm the suspicion of drug use or what led them to the overdose conclusion.

Also read: Families issue statements after deaths of Gauteng teenagers in Sabie

An inquest docket was opened, but after the autopsy was done at the state mortuary in Mashishing, the police changed the docket to that of murder and suicide.

The autopsy confirmed that Waldeck-Cooks died of strangulation, with police investigating Coetzee’s death as a suicide.

Police spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Mavela Masondo was unwilling to elaborate on the specific cause of Coetzee’s death.

Phone records in question

Witz also told Lowvelder on Monday that more than 22 000 messages from Coetzee were found on Waldeck-Cooks’ cellphone.

“I have not studied the content of these messages yet, but I did see screenshots of some of them,” Witz said.

When asked if these cellphone messages were discovered by the police during their investigation, Witz said they were not.

“Both the kids’ cellphones were handed to the parents at the scene by the police,” he said. “Cameron’s phone is still in the possession of her parents. We don’t know when, or if, the police will seize the phone and study the contents of the WhatsApp messages.”

Witz confirmed that earlier reports of ‘disturbing’ messages found on Waldeck-Cooks’ phone were indeed correct. The 22 000 messages were allegedly all sent during the month of February.

Family wants answers

Waldeck-Cooks and Coetzee were reportedly involved in a relationship for nine months. Five months after she received the barrage of messages from Coetzee, she broke off the relationship. The breakup took place just a few weeks before their deaths.

The Waldeck-Cookses want a proper investigation to be done so that an inquest finding can be made to establish what happened on that night. “Only then will the family have proper closure,” Witz said.

Efforts to obtain comment from the Coetzee family were unsuccessful.

Lowvelder asked Masondo why police have not obtained affidavits from Waldeck-Cooks’parents or seized the teenagers’ cellphones. “[The] police are not commenting on this case until the investigation is finalised,” he said in a written reply.

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