Deadly duo finally brought to book

After almost two years, judgment is handed down in the macabre case of the body in the boot

Holding a hastily written media statement in hand, Julie Padgett’s small frame was shaking. The anxiety of deciding how to articulate her family’s relief at hearing her brother’s killers were found guilty of the murder, was visible on her face.

Padgett’s brother, Dustan Blom, was found dead in the boot of his own car in the Montecasino parking lot in September 2013. The prime suspects were an ex-stripper, Maruschka Robinson, that Blom had thought was his friend, and her then-boyfriend, alleged drug dealer JP Malan.

The High Court sitting at Palm Ridge yesterday saw Judge Delize Smith tear into the pair for the plot to rob and defraud Blom and the ultimate murder of the father of three.

Robinson had befriended Blom months before the killing, and soon moved into his home. Throughout the trial, Robinson claimed their relationship was platonic, and this was why her then-boyfriend, Malan, would often come over to visit.

However, knowing that Blom had recently inherited vast sums of money from his wife, who had died giving birth to their twin children, the pair hatched a plot to defraud him.

The criminal pair, described by the State as South Africa’s modern-day Bonnie and Clyde would regularly slip the drug GHB into Blom’s wine at night, causing him to pass out for some time. They would then steal his bank cards, withdraw large amounts of money and delete the banking notifications sent to his cellphone.

The scheme worked several times, but on the night of September 18, 2013, Blom was already asleep when the two decided they needed cash. According to Robinson, Malan had suggested that because they could not sedate Blom that night, he’d place Blom in a chokehold, as he’d seen professional wrestlers do on television. He assured her this would keep Blom unconscious long enough to commit their debit card fraud. It was during this chokehold that Blom died from asphyxiation.

The pair decided to hide the body, eventually stowing it in the boot of Blom’s car and dumping the vehicle at Montecasino.

Video footage captured at the casino showed the couple enjoying themselves on the slot machines, flirting, high-fiving and withdrawing tens of thousands of rand from Blom’s account. However, Malan claimed he’d only been called by Robinson to commit the fraud, and that it must’ve been Robinson who’d drugged Blom and strangled him while he was unconscious. He admitted freely, however, that he helped dispose of the body and dropped the car off at Montecasino. However, Judge Smith ruled that Malan's version was impossible to believe, siding more with Robinson’s version of events.

She found Malan guilty of murder, before explaining that it was impossible to prove that Robinson realised that Malan’s plan would kill Blom. However, she said that Robinson’s claims that Malan had intimidated her into assisting in hiding the body were highly unlikely and insisted she’d helped of her own free will, even cleaning up the crime scene of her own volition. It was because of this that she found Robinson guilty as an accessory to the murder, which means she’ll receive a similar sentence to her murderconvicted co-accused.

Smith also ruled that the definition of robbery with aggravated circumstances was using violence to steal one’s possessions, and that the pair’s plan to knock Blom unconscious fit this perfectly. She found the pair both guilty on the robbery charge.

Both Robinson and Malan had already pleaded guilty to numerous fraud charges against them.

Malan also pleaded guilty to defeating the ends of justice for disposing of Blom’s body.

However, Smith acquitted Robinson on the same charge because it functioned on the same principals as the accessory to murder conviction, and thus would constitute a duplication of charges.

Robinson appeared blasé as she walked back into the cells after proceedings, looking only towards a relative in the gallery and mouthing something towards her. Malan, however, was red-faced and teary-eyed as he hugged a relative who approached him in the dock.

Outside the courtroom, Padgett was surrounded by family and friends. “It’s been an extremely painful time,” she read from her statement, her arms shaking slightly.

She told the group of journalists the past two years had been gruellingly difficult for her family, but they had been so happy to have such a staunch prosecution team on the case. She said the family was totally satisfied with Smith’s decision, and hoped the sentencing – set for August 18 – would reflect the harshness of the verdict.

While clearly rattled by the media attention, the broad smile as she finished reading showed that this may be the first step in her family’s journey towards closure.