GUILTY South Africa - Susan Rohde, 47, murdered, Stellenbosch, 24 July 2016 - #2

[PrimeSuspect]

Estate agency boss Jason Rohde arrested over wife's death

Jason Rohde, the CEO of Geffen International Realty Franchises, was arrested on Tuesday morning in connection with the death of his wife Susan.

Susan's body was found in a bathroom at Spier wine resort in Stellenbosch on July 24.

Initially it was thought she committed suicide but police spokesman Captain FC van Wyk said an inquest docket was opened and their investigation changed to murder after a post mortem was performed.

https://www.timeslive.co.za/news/so...y-boss-jason-rohde-arrested-over-wifes-death/

http://ewn.co.za/2017/07/26/jason-rohde-murder-trial-to-start-in-october

http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/susan-rohde-may-have-been-kicked-beaten-report-20160830

 

[Tortoise]

Just spotted this -

Criminal attorney Pete Mihalik has been shot dead outside Reddam School on the Atlantic Seaboard while dropping off his kids. Mihalik had represented several individuals linked to the underworld and high profile criminals. @News24

Mandy Wiener (@MandyWiener) | Twitter

His previous attorney was shot dead in 2016;

"Noorudien Hassan (45) was shot several times while in a car outside his home in Lansdowne late on Monday.

It is understood that he died in hospital.

[...]

Pete Mihalik, an advocate who worked with Hassan, most recently on the Rohde case, said: "He believed that everybody had a right to a fair trial, as our Constitution demands."
Jason Rohde lawyer murdered

 

[Tortoise]

Report here - Underworld bosses, Jason Rohde, gang wars and murders - the bloody life of Pete Mihalik

 

[Tortoise]

The trial will resume on Tuesday with closing arguments. Jenna Etheridge (@JennaEtheridge) | Twitter

(I thought it was Monday, but she's probably right)

 

[tmar]

Report here - Underworld bosses, Jason Rohde, gang wars and murders - the bloody life of Pete Mihalik

As Mihalik was involved in the Rohde's case, the following is an update:

Jenna Etheridge‏ @JennaEtheridge
#Mihalik Accused 1 is happy to have Legal Aid but Accused 2 wants a private lawyer and will be given time to arrange that. The two will remain in custody. The magistrate postpones the matter until November 8. @TeamNews24

12:25 AM - 1 Nov 2018

 

[tmar]

South Africa

Battle lines drawn in Rohde murder trial

https://www.timeslive.co.za/.../2018-11-05-battle-lines-drawn-in-rohde-murder-trial/

05 November 2018 - 07:00 By Philani Nombembe

Battle lines have been drawn with the prosecution set to butt heads with murder accused property mogul Jason Rohde’s counsel as his trial wraps up this week.

The High Court in Cape Town will hear closing arguments in the matter on Tuesday. The former CEO of Lew Geffen/Sotheby’s International Realty is accused of killing his wife Susan.

The millionaire had slain advocate Pete Mihalik as well as advocate Graham van der Spuy and three other lawyers on his legal team when his trial commenced in October 2017. Rohde trimmed his defence team in February and only Van der Spuy remains in his arsenal.

The state is convinced he killed his wife at a company conference at the Spier estate‚ near Stellenbosch in July 2016. She was found dead with the cord of a hair iron around her neck behind a locked bathroom door. Susan had insisted on attending the event as she was suspicious of Rohde after finding out five months earlier that he was having an affair with Cape Town estate agent Jolene Alterskye.

The case was adjourned in August to allow the parties to prepare their final arguments and both have filed their heads of argument.

 

[JudgeJudi]

Closing arguments

The State’s Heads of Argument are 208 pages long and the Defence’s 39 pages.

 

[tmar]

Jenna Etheridge‏ @JennaEtheridge 26m26 minutes ago
#Rohde LVN says there is ample evidence that Susan Rohde was a fighter and wouldn't have given up. Points to her wounds, blood and spatter. Would she go to sleep without taking mascara off and cleaning herself, he wonders. @TeamNews24

Jenna Etheridge‏ @JennaEtheridge 25m25 minutes ago


#Rohde Judge Gayaat Salie-Hlophe unpacking early morning hours before Susan died. She says on the accused's version, his wife fell asleep. "Perhaps when they returned to room, there was a sort of a seize fire and they disengaged" @TeamNews24

Jenna Etheridge‏ @JennaEtheridge 25m25 minutes ago

#Rohde LVN: That scene was staged and it is highly unlikely that Susan would have gone to sleep, killed herself in bathroom and ended argument like that. @TeamNews24

Jenna Etheridge‏ @JennaEtheridge 24m24 minutes ago
#Rohde LVN: The defence wants this court to find on the probabilities that there were ligature marks right around her neck, caused by electric cord. The State strongly disagrees with that and that she did not die by hanging. @TeamNews24

 

[tmar]

Jenna Etheridge‏ @JennaEtheridge 24m24 minutes ago

#Rohde: LVN says Susan was found with her bathrobe inside out and without the belt, which was found on the bed. "All the non-pathology evidence that the court has heard and seen emphatically suggests the deceased did not commit suicide" @TeamNews24

Jenna Etheridge‏ @JennaEtheridge 22m22 minutes ago
#Rohde LVN refers to Jason's testimony on verbal argument with his wife as a "carefully crafted choreography", "an extremely controlled version and [he had a] remarkable good recollection of the minute data of the physical altercation with the deceased". @TeamNews24

Jenna Etheridge‏ @JennaEtheridge 20m20 minutes ago
#Rohde LVN says defence's pathologist Dr Perumal testified that there was blood on Susan's face. "How could Jason not have seen that?" @TeamNews24

Jenna Etheridge‏ @JennaEtheridge 16m16 minutes ago
#Rohde LVN believes that Jason panicked and tried to put his wife's gown on her naked body after Desmond Daniels arrived in hotel room. It was the wrong way around because she was a heavy dead weight. Salie-Hlophe wants to know what the gown symbolises. @TeamNews24

Jenna Etheridge‏ @JennaEtheridge 16m16 minutes ago
#Rohde LVN: "That is a very strong argument that in general, who would specifically, a woman, go and commit suicide naked? What the State submits… at some stage during the argument in bedroom, she was completely naked. She was fighting for her marriage." @TeamNews24

 

[tmar]

Jenna Etheridge‏ @JennaEtheridge 21m21 minutes ago

#Rohde LVN: At some stage, Jason snapped. He had enough and he wanted Susan to shut up. Exactly how she then died, whether she was smothered, took a hand to her neck, caused her to die... The medical evidence, it's not conclusive as to the exact method of death. @TeamNews24

Jenna Etheridge‏ @JennaEtheridge 14m14 minutes ago

#Rohde Argument around the ligature is interesting. One of the defence's possible situations is that Susan died in a partial hanging. LVN explains that with her weight, Jason couldn't hang her completely... he used single cord and her legs were flat on surface. @TeamNews24

Jenna Etheridge‏ @JennaEtheridge 14m14 minutes ago

#Rohde LVN says this makes sense then why Daniels found Susan in that position in bathroom. "After he came in and left, Jason panicked further... and thought he must use the cord in a different fashion and that is why we found both strings hanging. @TeamNews24

Jenna Etheridge‏ @JennaEtheridge 13m13 minutes ago
#Rohde In this 'staged suicide' scenario and incomplete ligature mark, LVN says the cord could either have been used in fight with Susan while she was still alive, or applied after death. @TeamNews24

Jenna Etheridge‏ @JennaEtheridge 11m11 minutes ago
#Rohde State believes that maintenance worker Desmond Daniels kept to his story. "He made an extremely good impression in the way he dealt with this situation." He should be believed over the accused, says LVN. @TeamNews24

Jenna Etheridge‏ @JennaEtheridge 11m11 minutes ago
#Rohde LVN: Daniels opened the door, he didn't go in. He stood back, looked towards coffee table area and allowed accused to enter. At that stage, he was not aware of a couple staying there, that there was a person behind the door. @TeamNews24

Jenna Etheridge‏ @JennaEtheridge 10m10 minutes ago
#Rohde LVN: Accused wants us to believe Susan was wearing the gown. It's a thick lengthy gown with arms down to the knees. She was not wearing a gown at that point and this ties in with where faeces were found: on towels outside bathroom, on buttocks. NOT on gown. @TeamNews24

 

[tmar]

Jenna Etheridge‏ @JennaEtheridge 4m4 minutes ago
#Rohde I fail to see how the court could not attach weight to Daniels' testimony that Susan was naked and her legs were on the ground when he opened that bathroom door. @TeamNews24

Jenna Etheridge‏ @JennaEtheridge 1m1 minute ago
#Rohde LVN turns to evidence of Captain Marius Joubert, the police's blood splatter expert. LVN summarises that Joubert testified blood was found on duvet cover and pillowcase. Injuries to Susan's left eyebrow could be seen [reflected] on pillowcase. @TeamNews24

 

[Tortoise]

Good day all. I've missed the first hour but I'll listen and catch up with the first hour afterwards.

 

[Tortoise]

Well pointed out - no evidence that she (and not he) was using her phone.

 

[PrimeSuspect]

The judge is intervening a lot. Could be a good thing or not.

 

[tmar]

Jenna Etheridge‏ @JennaEtheridge 4m4 minutes ago
#Rohde Judge says mistress and Susan did have phone contact with each other around 7am. LVN questions if it was Susan who sent those messages from her phone and what happened between 5am and 7am. @TeamNews24

Jenna Etheridge‏ @JennaEtheridge 2m2 minutes ago
#Rohde LVN turns to testimony of Susan's psychologist Jane Newcombe. He says she is an expert and was impressive and accurate on the stand. One can take her evidence as an authoritative voice, weight can be attached to it. @TeamNews24

Jenna Etheridge‏ @JennaEtheridge 53s53 seconds ago
#Rohde LVN: Newcombe said coping strategies are an important aspect of her practice and she tried to help Susan with these during turbulent times. She said Susan was anxious, not depressed. @TeamNews24

 

[tmar]

The judge is intervening a lot. Could be a good thing or not.

I am worried, as the Judge continually intervenes.
Hope she does the same with the Defence.

Jenna Etheridge‏ @JennaEtheridge 20m20 minutes ago
#Rohde Judge on the last conversation between Jason and Susan: "It's the moment which the court must understand and whether those words that were expressed to her could have led to her walking to the bathroom and taking her own life". @TeamNews24

 

[Tortoise]

Her message to Jolene at 3am seems to be evidence that she did not let it go when they returned to the room.

 

[Tortoise]

Loved that expression on the prosecutor's face. Can't remember his name its been so long

 

[tmar]

Loved that expression on the prosecutor's face. Can't remember his name its been so long

LVN Louis van Niekerk

 

[Tortoise]

But she is relying on the word of the accused that he said it was over.