“This case represents possibly the worst investigation I have experienced in my entire career of 43 years.” – David Klatzow
Almost six years after the Kouga Kliphuis tragedy outside Kareedouw in which a young couple died inexplicably in a shower during the severe Covid-19 restrictions, renowned forensic expert Dr David Klatzow has turned up shocking new evidence that sheds a completely new light on the tragic event and investigation.
Dr. Klatzow’s involvement came a mere two months before sentencing is due in this highly contested and controversial case in which a beloved Kareedouw farmer, Kevin Pretorius (53), was suddenly accused and found guilty of double homicide after the tragic deaths of Jéan Vosloo (25) and Mari Hoon (28) on the long weekend of April 27, 2020. The couple was invited to the Kouga Kliphuis on Pretorius’s farm Zuuranys by the neighbour’s son, Stephan du Plessis (now 30). As the organiser/planner of the weekend braai and booze event and the only witness, Du Plessis only testified that he went to bed early on the fatal evening and knows nothing about what happened after he went to bed. Du Plessis testified that he only found their bodies the next morning when he went looking for them.
“The scene of the crime was so badly investigated by the Police with two separate sets of policemen being taken off the case, that the crime scene was damaged beyond repair.
“Secondly, it was initially treated as a scene of death instead of a scene of crime, which is a fatal mistake made only by the most amateur policemen that I can possibly think of. Thirdly, the clothing of the deceased was taken away from the scene by the parents of the deceased Jéan Vosloo, which is highly irregular.
You should never disturb the scene of a death, because you then destroy all crime scene evidence. These mistakes should be remedied, and we are still busy finding new evidence that is absolutely vital to this case,” he said.
Klatzow’s revelations resonate with the persistent public questions and speculations that shrouded this tragedy from the start under a cloud of suspicion, division and controversy.
Another shocking fact that was never questioned by the Defence is that the assumed pathologist who performed both autopsies and wrote both the autopsy and toxicology reports was not a board-certified pathologist, but had only been working for four months as a “medical officer” in the pathology department of the Uitenhage Provincial Hospital at the time.
Dr Poshani Cooposamy, who obtained her MB.Ch. B. Degree in 2013 at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, testified that she only started working as an MD in the pathology department of the Uitenhage Provincial Hospital in January 2020, when she performed both autopsies without assistance or supervision from a pathologist on the deceased a few months later.
According to these two shockingly limited and incomplete reports, both deceased had the same relatively low blood alcohol levels of 0,12 % and a carbon monoxide level of 7, which is apparently lethal. No other test results for chemical substances or stomach content to establish an estimated time of death were given.
The results of these reports were also questioned and contested from the start by the public, as the number of empty liquor bottles found on the scene, if consumed by only three people within a few hours, would result in a much higher blood alcohol reading. Furthermore, it was established beyond doubt that the two empty bottles of Karrie Beer found on the scene were picked up at a local pub on the same morning of the fatal event and that Jéan Vosloo wanted another six bottles of Karrie Beer, which were not available or given to him.
This supports the fact that Stephan du Plessis invited and prepared for many other friends to come to the Kouga Kliphuis for a party day, but it could not be confirmed yet if, or how many, did eventually turn up. One close friend who was contacted admitted under duress that he and his other friends were indeed all invited, but had to work late and eventually did not go.
Dr Klatzow has consulted an independent pathologist regarding other irregularities in the autopsy reports and is confident that all the crucial questions will soon be answered.
Also read: