‘Invalid’ DNA samples in Van Breda murder case
THE first defence witness in the trial of axe murder accused Henri van Breda took the stand for a second day in the Western Cape High Court, where she testified that most of the samples analysed by the SAPS forensic laboratory were “technically invalid”.
DNA expert Dr Antonel Olckers told the court that she received analysis of 151 samples out of 216 taken from the crime scene. She found 128 were invalid, leaving just 23 samples valid.
Olckers said standard operating procedures had not been followed and a breakdown in three processes in particular invalidated the analysis.
Earlier in the trial, state witness and chief forensic analyst Lieutenant Colonel Sharlene Otto testified that “no unknown DNA” had been found at the Van Breda family home in the luxury security estate, De Zalze in Stellenbosch.
Henri van Breda, 22, is on trial for the murders of his mother, Teresa, father, Martin and brother Rudi in January 2015. He also faces a charge of attempted murder after his sister Marli, who was 16 years old at the time, survived. She suffered brain injuries, has retrograde amnesia and is unable to recall the events and therefore unable to testify.
Van Breda has claimed an intruder, armed with an axe and knife, wearing dark clothing, a balaclava and gloves, was behind the murders.
In his plea explanation, he said he recalled “hearing what sounded like angry voices of more than one person, somewhere else in the house. “Although I could not distinguish specific words, it sounded like the persons were speaking Afrikaans.” He has pleaded not guilty to all charges. Olckers told the court that samples from the same case should not follow each other on a laboratory work list, yet this had happened with 116 samples, raising the chance of cross-contamination. She said there were 32 DNA samples where the expiration date of Hemastix, used in presumptive testing for blood, was not indicated. She testified that it cannot be used once expired.
The case resumes on Monday when the State will cross-examine.