Lawyers go on offensive as Rohde freed on R1.1m bail
MURDER accused Jason Rohde’s top-drawer legal team has turned its fire power on the police, pathologists, prosecutors and the press.
In a series of attacks, lawyers for the Johannesburg businessman — charged with murdering his wife, Susan — have:
Accused the police of contaminating the crime scene at Spier wine farm in Stellenbosch;
Claimed that state pathologists made basic errors in the postmortem examination;
Criticised prosecutor Carien Teunissen;
Accused the police of illegally arresting Rohde; and
Lashed out at the press for reporting with “total disregard” for the Rohde family’s rights.
While Rohde, CEO of Geffen International Realty Franchises, is on bail pending his next court appearance on September 23, his lawyers and investigators have gone into overdrive.
On Friday, attorney Tony Mostert blamed the police for leaking pathology reports to the press.
He also criticised newspaper articles about a report from a marriage counsellor the Rohdes were seeing.
“It’s unbelievable what’s happening. They seem to have access to documents that we don’t even have. They got that from the police,” said Mostert.
“Regrettably the newspapers . . . continue to publish false matter and interpretation of documents that should not be in their possession with a total disregard for the Rohde family and their rights,” he said.
“It is unfortunate that journalism on this level has, from our side, shut the door to all media.”
On Tuesday, Mostert commandeered TV news coverage outside the Stellenbosch Magistrate’s Court, where Rohde was freed on R1.1-million bail, to criticise the prosecution.
“The state had no basis whatsoever to have detained Mr Rohde for almost a week. He’s been wrongfully detained,” he said, repeating an earlier claim that Rohde’s arrest at his Johannesburg home without a warrant was unlawful.
The defence team’s independent investigation had “already found . . . that the police investigators probably contaminated the crime scene”, he said.
Legal commentator William da Grass said the defence would be “playing its cards close to its chest” and the media blackout was an “expected tactic”.
He added: “It’s going to depend very much on medical evidence.
“Unlike the prosecution, they don’t have to disclose before the trial what evidence they’re going to lead. That would be a courtesy to the court and to the state.
“There have been certain leaks that have occurred, but how true they are no one knows at this stage.”
National Prosecuting Authority spokesman Eric Ntabazalila said there was no basis to Mostert’s claims.
Susan’s body was found in the couple’s hotel bathroom on July 24. She had accompanied her husband of 23 years to the Sotheby’s International Realty South Africa annual convention.