Several policemen could be charged for 'Devilsdorp' killings, including the mysterious 'Colonel X' — report

22 August 2021 - 12:43 By TimesLIVE
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Marcel Steyn, mastermind Cecilia Steyn and Zak Valentine were found guilty of murder, fraud, racketeering and robbery.
Marcel Steyn, mastermind Cecilia Steyn and Zak Valentine were found guilty of murder, fraud, racketeering and robbery.
Image: Iavan Pijoos

Gauteng police say a docket implicating three policemen and one former officer in the Krugersdorp murders was handed over to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) in May but no decision to prosecute has been communicated.

According to Rapport newspaper on Sunday, the suspects include the former husband of convicted murderer and ringleader Cecilia Steyn, who was sent to jail for 11 murders, and the mysterious “Colonel X” mentioned in a new true-crime documentary series.

Her husband, Andries Steyn, has continued to deny having any knowledge of her activities which saw her turn several Christians into murderers after she made them believe she was a 42nd generational witch who needed protection from the Satanic church.

A new television series, titled Devilsdorp, currently showing on the streaming service Showmax, has reopened old wounds after exposing the gruesome Krugersdorp killings, also known as the “appointment murders”, on Johannesburg's West Rand.

The documentary hints at police involvement in the disappearance and tampering of evidence, and refers to a “Colonel X” who is believed to have befriended Cecilia at the time of the killings. 

If prosecution goes ahead, the four suspects could be charged with defeating the ends of justice for their supposed role in obstructing the investigations into the Krugersdorp killings.

Gauteng police spokesperson Col Noxolo Khweza said investigators were still waiting for a decision from the director of public prosecutions.

“The docket has been with the DPP since May. I won't be able to comment on that, and right now there isn't much I can add as a comment until we get that direction,” she told TimesLIVE.

The NPA was not immediately reachable for comment.

Rapport newspaper on Sunday reported all four suspects were expected to be charged with perjury among other charges.

Three of their names were withheld but ex-husband Steyn went on the record to deny any involvement. According to Rapport, Steyn, still an officer in the police, said he had no knowledge of the murders that were planned under his roof for years.

Cecilia was the mastermind of a religious fringe group called Electus per Deus — meaning chosen by God — which planned and executed the murders, first of their enemies and later they targeted people for their wealth.

Cecilia, who has two children, aged 12 and 16, with Andries, used tales of demonic attacks and possession to drive her foot soldiers to do her bidding.

In August 2019, Cecilia, Marcel Steyn, and Zak Valentine were sentenced to a collective 28 life terms for murdering 11 people on Johannesburg’s West Rand between 2012 and 2016.

Marcel’s mother Marinda and her brother Le Roux, 23, were already serving time after accepting plea deals for their roles in the killings.

According to Rapport, a senior policeman, only known as “Colonel X”, is the second suspect who allegedly played a huge role in thwarting police investigations.

According to the report, despite the allegations against him, “Colonel X” is still a highly regarded police officer and currently a member of a provincial investigation unit that reports directly to the national commissioner.

The third suspect allegedly has family ties to Cecelia. He was dishonourably discharged from the police due to housebreaking and is believed to have been involved in the plot to fake Valentine's death to claim his life insurance money.

The fourth suspect, according to Rapport, is a detective still in the police service.

The man was allegedly complicit in the fact that the original police file with valuable evidence about the first four murders had disappeared.

One of the pieces missing is a hat found at the scene where the group’s first victims, Joy Boonzair and Natacha Burger, were killed. Marinda wore an almost identical hat during her court testimony, said Rapport

TimesLIVE


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