BETHAL – Mr Francois Pretorius, a jeweller in Bethal who is facing charges on the double murder of Dr Hannes and Ms Ibel Beukes, appeared in the Bethal Magistrate’s Court on Monday, 25 May.
Mr Pretorius is accused of killing the couple on 18 March inside a farm house he is renting just outside of Bethal.
The couple’s bodies were found in the boot of their car that night in a veld near Bethal Dam after a motorcyclist saw the suspicious car and contacted the police.
Mr Pretorius was arrested more than a week later outside Belfast on the farm of his father-in-law, Mr Ernst van der Berg.
He has been in custody since his arrest and appeared in the Bethal Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday, 20 May for bail application.
W/O Nico Veldman, the investigating officer in this case, testified on Wednesday that, after they found the bodies of the couple, the police went to Mr Pretorius’ jewellery shop near Spur in Bethal and asked him a few questions, but they did not have any proof at the time and thus could not arrest him.
“The next day he was gone,” said W/O Veldman.
They circulated Mr Pretorius’ photo on social media and received many calls from people who claimed they saw him. Although some leads turned up nothing, the police still had to follow up all the information.
“We chased him for a week and we had a chopper up in the air near Belfast. I think we just missed him, as we searched the maize fields with the chopper.
“The next day (on 26 March) we went back to his father-in-law’s farm and found him there.”
Mr Pretorius allegedly first fled to Hatfield in Pretoria where he left his car before walking to his father-in-law’s farm near Belfast.
Also read:Â Bethal murder suspect arrested on farm in Belfast
W/O Veldman said in court on Wednesday the first crime scene was in Du Plooy Street where the couple’s bodies were found and the second scene the police visited, was Mr Pretorius’ house.
The police arrived at the house on 21 March. Mr Pretorius’ wife and children had left the house and went to stay with the wife’s stepfather in Belfast.
“The crime took place in the kitchen of the house and I could clearly see the scene was cleaned and washed,” said W/O Veldman.
“But I could see where the deceased were seated in the kitchen.”
The police found a little bit of blood on the porch. They went back to the scene the next evening (22 March) and used a liquid to make blood visible at night and managed to collect two more blood samples.
The police also found clothes Mr Pretorius used to clean up the kitchen. He burned it afterwards.
They also found part of a flashlight that was also burnt.
W/O Veldman said Mr Pretorius left a letter to his wife before he fled. In this letter he admitted to have killed the couple by hitting them with the flashlight.
“This flashlight is a Magritte flashlight and is very hard and durable and it is fully metal.”
W/O Veldman brought a Magritte flashlight to court to show the court what it looks like.
“It was definitely not a once-off shot, they were hit severely with the flashlight,” he said.
“After the incident, Mr Pretorius phoned his wife and told her the kitchen was dirty and asked her why there was nothing with which to clean the kitchen.”
His wife then allegedly bought cleaning stuff and gave it to Mr Pretorius at his jewellery shop and then dropped him off at their house.
Later that evening Mr Pretorius asked his wife and children to help him clean the kitchen. According to W/O Veldman, Ms Pretorius found it strange that her husband wanted to clean the kitchen until 11.30pm that evening.
W/O Veldman said he spoke to both Mr Pretorius’ landlords at the shop he was renting and at his house. He owes the landlord of his shop R8 000 and the landlord of his house R120 000 and another R20 000 for electricity.
“According to the landlord, Mr Pretorius always had excuses not to pay and said that business was bad and the economy was down,” said W/O Veldman.
In the letter to his wife, Mr Pretorius said he was very sorry, that he took all the money and gold from the shop and that he was leaving.
“There was no indication that he was planning to return,” said W/O Veldman.
It came out in court that a friend of the Beukes couple said she visited them the week before they were murdered and they mentioned to her that they would be visiting Mr Pretorius the following week to ask him about their jewellery on which he was working.
The friend also had a ring to the value of R5 000 that was with Mr Pretorius for repairs.
“Mr Pretorius and the Beukes couple had a quarrel about Jesus and he lost his temper and killed them,” W/O Veldman said.
He said Mr Pretorius is definitely a flight risk. He said Mr Pretorius was only caught, because he (Veldman) could not rest until Pretorius was arrested.
“I am sure he did not sleep during the six days we were chasing him, because I did not sleep either.”
Mr Pretorius was also reported missing in 2003 when the family stayed in Hendrina and only returned several weeks later. He was standing in the house when his wife unlocked the door.
Also read: Murdered couple from Bethal was ‘hit with a sharp object’ say police
