Three men have appeared in a South African court facing charges of killing two women and feeding their bodies to pigs on a farm where they were employed.
The accused are Zachariah Johannes Olivier, 60, the farm owner; Adrian Rudolph de Wet, 19, a supervisor; and William Musora, 45, an employee.
Musora, a Zimbabwean national, also faces charges of illegal immigration in addition to being implicated in the crimes. They are charged with two counts of premeditated murder, one count of attempted murder, and possession of an unlicensed firearm.
The victims, Locadia Ndlovu and Maria Makgatho, were allegedly shot dead in August while they were trespassing on Olivier’s farm in Limpopo province.
According to reports, Ndlovu’s husband, Mabutho, was also shot during the incident. He managed to crawl to a nearby road and seek help before being taken to a police station where an ambulance was called.
Despite Ndlovu’s report to the police, officers initially did not find the women on the farm. It was only later that the bodies were discovered in a pigsty, where they had been mauled by the pigs and exhibited multiple gunshot wounds, as confirmed by police.
The women, aged 47 and 34, were reportedly on the farm to collect potentially expired dairy products that had been discarded by a truck.
Olivier, De Wet, and Musora appeared in Mankweng Magistrates’ Court in Polokwane on Tuesday. The prosecution has requested that they remain in custody until their trial concludes.
The case has sparked widespread outrage in South Africa, with protests outside the court demanding that the accused be denied bail and face the maximum possible sentence.
The South African Human Rights Commission has urged the public not to resort to vigilante justice in response to the case.
