Weekend Argus (Saturday Edition)
Double trouble for former bank treasurer
AS THE former treasurer of the South African Bank of Athens tries to secure bail after being charged with the murder of his wife, Vincenzo Pietropaolo is now also under investigation for the killing of his own father.
Pietropaolo was arrested in November on the night of the murder of his estranged wife, Manuela.
He is accused of breaking into her Brackenhurst home and shooting her at pointblank range 20 times.
That night, Manuela had been visited by her sister, Serena Nicolaides.
The couple had separated in 2014 with Vincenzo moving out of their shared home, briefly staying at his father’s home.
According to Nicolaides, the couple had argued continually over Vincenzo’s maintenance payments on their shared house.
The estranged couple had been in the middle of divorce proceedings although, according to Nicolaides, it was Vincenzo who had been slowing down the process through his lawyer.
While Manuela had often complained to her sister about the slow divorce process, on the night of her murder she hadn’t mentioned any recent issues with her husband.
Less than two hours after Nicolaides left neighbours heard a barrage of gunshots coming from home.
Police were summoned immediately and, after interviewing a neighbour who had allegedly seen Vincenzo’s vehicle in the area, they tracked him to his home in Randburg.
Three sources linked to the investigation confirmed that investigators found Vincenzo with his bags packed, allegedly set to flee the country.
He was also found with at least two firearms, one of which is under forensic analysis to determine if it was used to kill Manuela.
The other firearm, however, has led investigators to believe that Vincenzo may have also been involved in the killing of his father, Pasqualino.
Vincenzo had been staying at his father’s home in March 2017, when the
Manuela’s 91-year-old’s body was discovered.
The incident where Pasqualino was shot twice in the head had allegedly taken place in the morning, after Vincenzo had gone to work for the day.
While police initially believed the incident may have been a house robbery gone wrong, nothing had reportedly been stolen from the home. There were no signs of forced entry.
However, a firearm linked to the crime scene had allegedly gone missing, at least until it was allegedly discovered in Vincenzo’s possession.
According to two police sources, the murder investigation of Pasqualino’s death has been reopened, with Vincenzo recently providing a warning statement to the investigators.
This week,
Vincenzo appeared at the Palm Ridge Magistrate’s court, launching a new bail application despite having abandoned such proceedings last year over the lack of prospects of success.
At the time of his initial bail bid, Vincenzo’s three sons had provided police with affidavits stating why they believed their father should not be released on bail.
Other relatives – including Nicolaides – expressed their fear that should bail be granted, there would be no guarantee of their safety.
On Monday Vincenzo renewed the bail application through his new lawyer, advocate Sandile Buthelezi. However, the application was postponed to next week to allow the prosecution time to prepare.
Buthelezi refused to speak about the case, claiming any comment would be sub judice.
Meanwhile, Nicolaides told Independent Media that if her brother-in-law was released on bail, the lives of her relatives could be at stake.
“We feel he is a genuine danger to us and society. I have a 90-year-old mother who lives on her own. He knows where we all live,” she said.
“The way in which he ( allegedly) killed my sister was so brutal... No one deserves to die like that, especially not her.”