True Crime South Africa

PODCAST | Officer down: the murder of Leslie Cilliers

19 April 2021 - 10:59 By Nicole Engelbrecht
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A photo of inspector Leslie Cilliers.
A photo of inspector Leslie Cilliers.
Image: Supplied by family

Listen to the story here: 

On July 23 2003, inspector Leslie Cilliers pulled over a vehicle containing eight bank robbers. Within seconds, the hardworking and dedicated police officer and family man was dead — mowed down in a hail of gunfire.

His daughter, Roxanne van Eck, was just 17 years old at the time and has spent every day since then living with this immense loss.

In February 2021, the Cilliers family received unexpected news. One of Leslie’s murderers had become eligible for parole. The family had believed that after receiving multiple life sentences for their crimes, the perpetrators would never see freedom. They were wrong.

Now, 18 years after her father’s death, Van Eck is campaigning for justice for her father again.

In episode 51 of True Crime South Africa, we tell the story behind Leslie Cilliers’ life and death and Van Eck's fight to ensure his murderers serve their time.  

For more episodes, click here.

Community Intervention Centre (24-hour trauma helpline): 082-821-3447

Join the conversation on Twitter at #TrueCrimeSA

E-mail the show: wordsmith195@gmail.com


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