Why two housewives hit the road to watch the Van Breda trial
For weeks‚ two housewives from Somerset West have travelled to Keerom Street‚ Cape Town‚ for one thing: to watch a real life horror unfold in public.
The women‚ who asked not to be named‚ said they had watched the high court proceedings from the public gallery on several occasions and analysed the 23-year-old Henri van Breda.
The young man stands accused of murdering his mother Teresa‚ father Martin and brother Rudi with an axe at their luxury home at an upmarket estate.
The murder occurred close to the women's home - about a 10 minute drive.
"It is just fascinating‚ and basically just the cold heartedness of the crime‚ you know. It was very intimate‚" said the platinum blonde sitting at a café across from court.
"It's just disturbing‚" they added in unison.
"It's very worrying but unfortunately‚ my opinion is he did it‚ everything points to him doing it‚" the woman continued.
Her friend‚ a dark blonde‚ said that she couldn't understand what the motive could have possibly been.
"We've heard so many stories. We've heard that there was a drug problem and they wanted to get him into a rehab. We've heard that the parents wanted to cut him off because he wasn't complying. I just can't imagine anything to be a strong enough motive to do that to your family‚ I can understand people hating their parents‚ but to do that to your siblings‚ and there's jealousy‚ it's either that or he's a very sick individual‚" said the platinum blonde.
The dark blonde believes that he is suffering from a "serious mental illness" and was perhaps too shy to face it or let anyone know.
Her friend concurred.
"It must take a very sick person to do something like that‚ because it must be very intimate‚ it's not like a gun where you shoot someone and they die," said the dark blonde.
The woman with the platinum tresses said she could understand poison but not an axe.
"You'd expect someone that comes from a disadvantaged background, and this is not a racial thing at all‚ you don't expect someone that dresses walks and talks like you do to act like that‚" she said.
"We don't know what happens behind closed doors. The facade is so perfect."