Man back in court over wife’s death at hotel

Rohde maintains his innocence

Murder accused Jason Rohde returns to court today almost two months after WhatsApp messages handed in as evidence exposed his two-timing.

The Johannesburg businessman’s trial resumes in the High Court in Cape Town after a break‚ during which Rohde’s bail conditions were amended to allow him to spend time in Plettenberg Bay.

Rohde is charged with murdering his wife‚ Susan‚ and making her death look like a suicide. They have three daughters.

Daniel Witz‚ one of the lawyers of the former estate agency head‚ said: “Our client still [maintains his innocence] and intends to go through to the end of the trial. He is holding up as much as he can.”

“The state is expecting to call another four or five witnesses at the commencement of the trial … We have to wait for the state to finish their witnesses to see who it is necessary to call.”

The former chief executive was sharing a room with his wife at Spier wine estate near Stellenbosch in July 2016 when she was found dead with the cord of a hair iron around her neck behind the locked bathroom door.

The indictment against Rohde accuses him of placing the cord around Susan’s neck.

“The postmortem examination conducted on the body of the deceased shows the cause of death as consistent with asphyxia following manual strangulation … ‚” it says.

Before the beginning of the trial‚ Witz said they would fight the case based on forensic evidence‚ adding that prosecution allegations of an argument over an affair between Rohde and Cape Town estate agent Jolene Alterskye were circumstantial.

“Our view is that the most important aspect of this case is the forensic evidence‚ and unless the state can overcome the forensic evidence then all the surrounding circumstances are not as relevant as the state currently thinks they are.”

WhatsApp messages told a story of Rohde’s love for Alterskye and his patchy relationship with his wife. Many of the messages were exchanged in the last 24 hours of Susan’s life.

Rohde WhatsApped: “This weekend makes me realise just how much I don’t want to be with Sue anymore. All I can think of is you. … I don’t want anything anymore in my life than to be with you.”