Neighbours heard raging argument
Son appears in court after triple murders of his parents and sister
Neighbours heard a raging argument on New Year’s Eve before the bodies of Johan Botha, his wife Riki and their daughter Soné Botha were found the next day on the back of an abandoned bakkie in Ekurhuleni.
The couple’s son Eugene Botha, 43, was arrested on Tuesday and appeared in the Germiston magistrate’s court on Thursday. He is accused of murdering his sister and parents.
The Sunday Times visited the neighbourhood yesterday and found a quiet residential area where neighbours and residents were still in a state of shock.
The wife of Botha’s elder brother, who did not want to identify herself, said: “My husband is busy at the moment. We are still reeling from the tragedy. Everybody is too much in shock to talk to the media right now.
“People started spreading the news of what had happened on social media before we were notified. We had to learn from people living far away from here that our parents and sister had died.”
Some neighbours were willing to talk about the tragedy, but none wanted to be identified.
A woman living nearby said the family had a huge altercation on December 31.
“It was somewhere between 4.30pm and 5pm when the screaming started. It was either the mother or the daughter but I can’t say for sure which one. What I can say is that she was very, very angry,” she said.
“For most of the rest of the night things were quiet, but late in the evening, just before the fireworks and crackers started, we heard what seemed to be three gunshots.”
She described Eugene Botha as a “problematic child”. “From a very young age he was a problem, [allegedly] always involved in drugs. There were fights constantly and a lot of people were uncomfortable when he was around,” she added.
Another neighbour saw Botha being arrested.
“He gave the police attitude when they came to pick him up and to the last moment before they left with him, he still kept saying it was a robbery,” they said.
“You can see when someone is very sad about something terrible that happened. I saw Eugene on Tuesday when the police came to fetch him and again on Wednesday when he came back to the house with the police. There was no emotion visible, except for irritation. He almost seemed irritated by the police.”
A third resident was still shocked by the events.
“We are not used to this kind of thing happening in Rondebult. This man was [allegedly] on drugs from a very early age and even though we all know what kind of problems are caused by drugs, this was still totally unexpected.”
Neighbours said police removed items from the house when they returned with Botha on Wednesday.
“They came out with two hunting rifles and a very bloody knife,” said one.
Another neighbour said the family mostly kept to themselves. “We would wave as we passed each other in the street but that was the extent of our friendship. I had not seen the son in about two years and assumed he had left home, but other people have now told me he was there all the time.
“We knew they were fighting but we never expected this.”
According to the charge sheet, Botha was found guilty of fraud 25 years ago and jailed for four years. This year he faces three charges of murder. He will appear in court again on January 11 when applications by media houses for permission to photograph him in court will be considered.
Gauteng police spokesperson Col Dimakatso Nevhuhulwi said police could not comment further on the case.