Amnesty Hearings — Durban — 1999-09-01

MR WILLS: Who do you think would have been involved in that, with your knowledge of the operation?

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: I don't know, Chairperson.

MR WILLS: Was this not a menial task left to askaris?

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: I would not be able to say, Chairperson.

MR WILLS: Did you do a thorough inspection of the room when you were removing the body?

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: No, Chairperson, my attention was drawn to the body when I went into the room.

MR WILLS: So there is a possibility that other objects might have been in the room which escaped your attention?

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: It's possible, Chairperson.

MR WILLS: Can you describe, your evidence to this effect confused me.  Can you describe to the best of your recollection exactly what order you received after being involved in the discussion with Col Taylor and Mr Botha as regards disposing of the body?

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: What discussion followed?

MR WILLS: No, what order you received.  I think it's common cause that you received an order to dispose of the body.  I'm wanting to know exactly what the content of that order was.

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: Chairperson, the instruction was that we would dispose of the body in a place close to her home.

MR WILLS: So why did you choose the place where you dumped the body?

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: Chairperson, it was an open field.  It was a quiet place, there were no houses in the vicinity, so the possibility of us being seen was remote.

CHAIRPERSON: Mr du Preez, were you told why it should be, or did you know why it should be close to the home?  Were you told to hide the body that it never be found again, or was there anything, any instruction given to you in any more detail other than, dispose of the body near the home?

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: No, Chairperson, it was said we have to drop her off at a point where people would find her, where she would be found and she could be identified.

MR WILLS: So why did you drop her off in a quiet place?

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: Chairperson, that is a place where many taxis pass during the day so at that time during the night it was a quiet place, but during the day it's a very busy place.

MR WILLS: Would you be able to point out to us exactly where this place is today?

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: I would be able to.

MR WILLS: Now, I'm sure Mr Visser will correct me if I'm wrong, but my recollection is that Wasserman was involved in the interrogation, do you recall the evidence whilst you've been listening here?

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: I saw by means of the statements that Wasserman was involved in the interrogation.

MR VISSER: Mr Chairman, yes, he was present during the interrogation.

MR WILLS: Now no doubt as you were surprised that this death had occurred, you would have discussed the circumstances surrounding this death when you were driving with him to dispose of the body.  I want to know what was said then.

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: Chairperson, Capt Botha had already informed me that the person had died of a heart attack.

CHAIRPERSON: The question was, when you and Mr Wasserman were now driving off with the body, did you not discuss the circumstances of the death, didn't you say "What did you see?  What happened?"  Wouldn't it have been a natural thing  for you to have talked about?

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: I cannot recall that we discussed it, Chairperson.

MR LAX: Surely you would have been a little bit curious to know how it was that she came to have a heart attack?  It's one thing to be told yes, she had a heart attack, but surely your curiosity would have at least piqued some discussion.

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: Chairperson, I cannot recall at all that Wasserman told me anything about the assault.  I heard about the assault only afterwards.

MR LAX: I'm not asking you about the assault.  I'm not saying anything about assault.  I'm saying surely your inquisitiveness, your curiosity, just as an ordinary person, would have been, how did this woman come to have a heart attack?  And if you knew that Mr Wasserman was present, as you would have known at the time, you would have said to him , "Well Lawrie tell me what happened, this is a bizarre situation."

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: Chairperson, they had already told me how the heart attack had taken place.

MR LAX: So you already knew all that.

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: Correct.

CHAIRPERSON: Mr Wills.

MR WILLS: Did you and Wasserman talk about anything in the car?

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: Chairperson, I think we discussed or where we spoke about where we would dispose of the body and we drove looking for a suitable place.

MR WILLS: And who decided amongst you, where the body would be disposed?

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: As far as I can recall Chairperson, we drove in the direction of kwaMashu and we passed kwaMashu and we said, I cannot recall whether Wasserman or I decided, but we decided that this was as good a place as any and we will drop it off there.

MR WILLS: And tell me, how did you get the body out of the car, in detail?

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: We pulled the vehicle off the road and we waited to see if everything was quiet and whether there were any persons walking around on the road or whether vehicles were approaching and then we took her out of the boot and carried her for about 10 metres into the field.

MR WILLS: Was the car on the side of the road or was the car partially in the bush?

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: It was off the road completely.

MR WILLS: And how did you carry the deceased?

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: We used the same method, under her arms and by her feet and carried her.

MR WILLS: You can't remember whether you were carrying her legs?

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: I cannot recall, Chairperson.

MR WILLS: Do you remember if she had shoes on?

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: I cannot recall, I assume she was fully clothed.

MR WILLS: Did you notice whether or not she had a ring?

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: I didn't see that Chairperson.

MR WILLS: Did you notice whether or not she had panties on?

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: No, Chairperson.

MR WILLS: When you drove back, what did you talk about in the car?

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: Chairperson, I cannot remember.

CHAIRPERSON: Did you sleep at the shooting range that night?

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: No Chairperson, I think we only returned early the next morning.

MR LAX: So where did you go to in the intervening period?

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: I think we spent the evening at our homes.

MR LAX: So after dumping the body off, what did you then do and what did Wasserman then do?  Who dropped who off?  Where?

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: I think Wasserman dropped me at my home and then he left and then he picked me up the following morning and we went back to the shooting range.

ADV BOSMAN: You said that it was your vehicle.  Was it the usual that you exchange the car?

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: That's correct, Chairperson.

MR WILLS: When you were dumping this body what was going through your mind?  Didn't you think you were doing something wrong?

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: Chairperson, it was a very unpleasant task.

MR WILLS: Did you feel any sympathy for the deceased?

SALMON JOHANNES GERHARDUS DU PREEZ: Yes, Chairperson.

MR WILLS: Now, why was it to the best of your recollection, why was it decided that the deceased's body should be dumped close to her home?  You said you were part of - you didn't participate in the discussion, but you were present when Botha and Taylor were deciding what to do with the body.