Justice Delayed: Limpopo Pig Farm Murder Trial Pushed to October
Photograph: AP
A South African farmer and two of his workers have been charged with the murder of two women, whose bodies were reportedly fed to pigs on the farm.
The victims, Maria Makgatho and Locadia Ndlovu (also referred to in local reports as Kudzai Ndlovu), were allegedly killed after trespassing on the farm in Limpopo province in August. They were reportedly searching for discarded dairy products that had been set aside as pig feed.
Zachariah Johannes Olivier, a farmer, his supervisor, Andria Rudolph de Wet, and farm worker William Musora are being prosecuted for premeditated murder, attempted murder, and illegal possession of a firearm. Additionally, Musora, a Zimbabwean citizen, faces charges for unlawfully residing in South Africa.
The three men charged in the case appeared in court on Tuesday seeking bail, but the hearing was adjourned and rescheduled for October.
It is alleged that the two women were shot on Olivier’s farm. According to local media, a third man, identified as Ndlovu’s husband, was injured and managed to crawl to a nearby road, where he called out for assistance. Several days later, the police found the women’s decomposed bodies in a pigsty on the farm.
The case has sparked outrage in a nation plagued by high levels of violent crime and widespread mistreatment and underpayment of farm workers. In addition to frequent farmer murders, the majority black population continues to face significant barriers to land ownership, a situation reminiscent of the apartheid era.
Political party members held a protest outside the courthouse, calling for the maximum penalties for the accused and insisting that they be denied bail.
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