Dagga addict convicted of killing schoolmate's mom who 'grabbed his bum'

The high court in Cape Town has convicted a self-confessed dagga addict who claimed he killed his friend’s mother for making moves on him.

Durbanville resident Reghard Groenewald, 25, was found guilty on Thursday of murdering Hilary van Rooyen, 52, in her home in May 2017. Groenewald attended school with one of Van Rooyen’s sons.

According to the state, Groenewald killed Van Rooyen “by hitting her with his hands and beating her with a vase”. He also stole her Apple iPhone 6 and a bunch of keys.  

In his admission, the burly defendant said he had gone to the Van Rooyen’s house to bid her farewell before he went overseas to teach English. He said he ran out of petrol when he left her house and asked her for R100, returning the following day to repay her.

“I arrived at the deceased’s house and she was home alone. She invited me in for coffee. The deceased and I sat in the back braai area and smoked cigarettes and drank coffee,” said Groenewald.

“When I finished my coffee, I got up to leave and excused myself. The deceased encouraged me to stay and offered me more coffee. I declined. I walked to the kitchen and put my mug in the sink.

"Whilst I did this she pressed her bosom into my back. I found this very awkward and moved away toward the front door. I walked towards the front door and the deceased followed.”

Groenewald said he became uncomfortable when she stood in front of the door as he tried to leave, telling him “how much she was going to miss me".

"The deceased came forward to hug me and I tried to give her a quick hug so I could leave. She grabbed me in a very passionate embrace and placed her hands on my bum. I tried to pull back but she held me tighter.”

Groenewald said he got annoyed, asking her: “What are you doing?” He said Van Rooyen also got upset.

“She seemed desperate and said ‘what, don’t you find me attractive?’ I reminded her that I had a girlfriend and she said [something] along the lines of ‘am I too old for you and not as attractive as your little girlfriend?' ”

He said he felt trapped when Van Rooyen grabbed his hand and said “come on”. Groenewald said he  pushed her “forcibly” on the chest and she lost her balance and fell down in front of him.

“She…shouted ‘look at what you’ve done, you’ve assaulted me, I will tell everyone that you came on to me and beat me up’. She kept repeating that she will tell my girlfriend that I tried to have sex with her and beat her up.

"It happened so quickly but I grabbed the nearest object to me off a table, and tried to hit the deceased off me. It happened to be a glass vase. I think I hit her twice in succession. She slumped forward face down onto the ground,” said Groenewald.

He said he panicked and grabbed her cellphone and keys, which he threw away as he drove off.

“At that stage I thought maybe I had killed her and was terrified,” he said. “I drove home and immediately smoked cannabis. I smoked about a gram of cannabis.”

He was arrested a few days later after CCTV footage showed him driving away from Van Rooyen’s home. He confessed.

Groenewald denied that he had intended to kill Van Rooyen but the court found him guilty of murder.

“On the facts of this matter, the accused inflicted serious injuries to deceased by striking her violently, on the head, at least twice, with a hard object,” the 31-page judgment read.

“The accused must have foreseen death as a possible result of his actions and the accused must have subjectively reconciled himself with that foreseen possibility.”

Sentencing procedures will begin on August 6. Groenewald's bail was extended with strict conditions.