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

DNA Solves
DNA Solves
DNA Solves

New Posts

Status
Not open for further replies.
Jason on call to brother-in-law: "I said to Mark I had killed Susan. My actions [adultery] had caused her to take my life. I don't recall using those words [I killed her, I killed her] but have no reason to disbelieve what Mark said."

Lawyer takes out affidavit Jason made the same day his wife died. It says: "He opened the door but we couldn't wedge it open. My wife was blocking the entry as she was hanging behind the door". Lawyer asks if he wants to change that. Jason: No, that's correct.

Lawyer moves now to police interviewing his domestic worker Lucy. Jason: "Sometime last year, I got a call from my youngest daughter to say that the police were at my house and they [his twin daughters] were obviously very upset."

Jason: "When I was talking to my youngest daughter, Sgt Adams took the phone from her and I knew exactly who it was. I said to him, what are you doing? He said he had come to take a statement from Lucy, who had worked for us for 14 years"

https://twitter.com/TeamNews24
 
Jason said he told Adams that he would have taken his domestic worker to the police if necessary. He said his children were very upset and he drove home. "My middle daughter was sobbing, thinking I was going to be taken away. Lucy wasn't there."

Jason says it is not possible that Lucy could ever have witnessed any violence between him and his wife.

Lawyer says it is on record that Susan bruised very easily. Says medical experts would testify this is normal, some bruise at certain times of months and some bruise because of an underlying pathology.

Jason says that as a teenager, his wife was suspected of having Leukemia. She never actually had it. But can't comment on whether she had tests on underlying cause for bruising.

https://twitter.com/TeamNews24
 
Lawyer asks if Susan had any conditions that could have affected post-mortem findings. Jason: "Had Sgt A contacted Susan's mom or sister, the findings with regard to bruise on inside of thigh would have been made apparent to police. No such enquiry was made".

Court now hears about father-in-law testing hotel bathroom door etc. "In his words, he tested the hook in the bathroom. He was staying with me at the time and when we had our family meeting, he told me that".

Lawyer asks if Jason sent any messages or used his wife's phone to send messages before her death. He denies this. "Susan sent those messages."

Lawyer reads out indictment [high court document which states charges and background]. He goes through background on Susan discovering affair, which started in June 2015. Jason says interactions started then, but not physical side of affair.

https://twitter.com/TeamNews24
 
Indictment says several witnesses saw the Rohde couple arguing that weekend. Jason confirms they were arguing. Indictment says he called reception at 8:22 to have bathroom door unlocked. Jason confirms that.

Jason says the indictment is incorrect where it states that he found his wife lying on her back on the bathroom floor. Also incorrect about how the strand was found hanging.

Lawyer says we now come to "crucial bit". He reads that curling iron was used to stage her death as a suicide as it was placed around the hook in different positions. Jason: "It is incorrect."

Indictment alleges that he tampered with crime scene by locking the bathroom door, placing the curling iron on hook and misleading police. Jason: "There is no truth in that whatsoever."

https://twitter.com/TeamNews24
 
Indictment states that post-mortem by State concluded that Susan's death was consistent with asphyxia [lack of oxygen] following manual strangulation and external airway obstruction. Jason: "That is incorrect. Susan committed suicide".

Lawyer reads out charge of murder and asks him again whether he caused her death through any violence. Jason says "he absolutely did not".

Lawyer reads out charge of defeating the ends of justice, by inflicting injuries and tampering with the crime scene.

Lawyer: "The State is saying you murdered your wife by strangling her, took her into bathroom and put cord around her neck to make it look like she had hanged herself." And changed position of cord. Jason says it is simply not true.

https://twitter.com/TeamNews24
 
Lawyer now summarises what the State is alleging. That he killed her, had to lift up her body. Jason: "I remember when I picked Susan up, her body is extremely heavy. Susan weighed 52kg. I am not a physically strong guy. Don't see myself as a weak man."

Jason shrugs shoulders and says State's allegations about tying cord around his wife's neck to make it look like she committed suicide doesn't make sense to him.

Lawyer now turns to what Susan was wearing. Jason says she had a dressing gown when she went into bathroom. Found her like that. "Why I would dress her in a dressing gown [as alleged], I am not sure. I don't understand."

On allegation that Jason took down single strand of electric cord at back of door and then hung it up in a double strand, he says: "It doesn't make sense. It is illogical to the point of being absurd."


Jason: "I performed CPR because I wanted to help my wife. I was concerned about trying to help Susan." Says there is no logical reason for someone to perform CPR if they have murdered that person

https://twitter.com/TeamNews24
 
Last edited:
Lawyer asks if Jason has final words for the court. Jason: "I am guilty of being an adulterer. I have destroyed the life of my children, my 3 children, Susan's mom, dad, brother, sister, their children. I take full responsibility."

Jason: "I have to live with that shame for the rest of my life. The option for me was divorce, my lady, not murder. With all my faults, I am not a murderer. I made a lot of mistakes but I am not a murderer."

Jason: "I have to live with the consequences of my actions for the rest of my life. That is the guilt and shame I have to carry. When I look at my children today, I can look at them knowing I am guilty of driving their mom to take her life."

Jason: "But I can also look at them knowing I didn't kill her. I destroyed a lot of people's lives but I didn't kill her. The way I think of it, I already have a life sentence. I can never get rid of that."

https://twitter.com/TeamNews24
 
Jason: "It makes me sick to my stomach. I am so ashamed of what I did, I don't know if you can understand this, maybe it comes out the wrong way. But it felt like I haven't been able to even grieve Susan."

Jason: "Because from 24/48hrs after the 24th [July 2016], I have just been fighting for my life. The other night I dreamt she [Susan] was standing next to me holding my hand and there is a lady sitting in the gallery now who reminds me of Susan."

Jason: "I can look them in the face knowing I didn't kill their mom. I am ashamed but I know I can love them, because I didn't kill their mom."

Court adjourns for tea. Back at 11:15am.

https://twitter.com/TeamNews24
 
We have found, handyman Daniels changed his account in Court on questioning.
With Rohde continually stating how 'absolutely correct' his own version is, disagreeing with Daniels account of finding Susan in the bathroom, Daniels version may be disregarded.
 
Thank you so much JJ for all the updates, I saw this when Nik VDL was tweeting yesterday and wondered if there was a thread here, I spent most of yesterday reading all your posts - at first I thought 'yep def guilty' then I switched to maybe she did take her own life, now I'm back to thinking 'guilty' again.
 
Back after tea. Defence wraps up evidence-in-chief and State stands up to start cross-examination.

Prosecutor asks why Susan was reluctant to come back to SA after emigrating to Australia. Jason says she missed her family there. "It was a mutual decision. Susan was a very strong person."

Jason mentioned that Susan was an exceptional athlete. He agrees with prosecutor that an athletic life requires a lot of discipline. She continued exercising, had a trainer, ran and kept her figure up to 2016.

Jason described wife as absolute perfectionist in his evidence-in-chief [EIC]. Says now: "She was a very dedicated person. When she set her mind to something, she would do her utmost to achieve her goals. I am not a psychologist but she had A-type personality.

https://twitter.com/TeamNews24
 
Back after tea. Defence wraps up evidence-in-chief and State stands up to start cross-examination.

Prosecutor asks why Susan was reluctant to come back to SA after emigrating to Australia. Jason says she missed her family there. "It was a mutual decision. Susan was a very strong person."

Jason mentioned that Susan was an exceptional athlete. He agrees with prosecutor that an athletic life requires a lot of discipline. She continued exercising, had a trainer, ran and kept her figure up to 2016.

Jason described wife as absolute perfectionist in his evidence-in-chief [EIC]. Says now: "She was a very dedicated person. When she set her mind to something, she would do her utmost to achieve her goals. I am not a psychologist but she had A-type personality.

Prosecutor says psychologist described Susan as being very involved with her children. "In that sense, her death came as a complete shock to them." Jason replies that it came as a complete shock to everybody.

Team News24 (@TeamNews24) | Twitter
 
Jason tells prosecutor: She volunteered at an orphanage and probably spent more time there than volunteering at police station. She was very caring and cared about the community. Not aware of other volunteering she mentioned to her psychologist

Prosecutor says that his EIC indicated that Susan was well liked. Jason says: "She had very few friends from her school days. Her closest friends were ladies we met when our children went to school with her children."

Prosecutor questions why he testified Susan had a wide circle of friends and friends going back to school. Jason mentioned now she had acquaintances from school. Clarifies she had a close circle of confidants.

Prosecutor: "Susan was led to believe by you that you are working on the marriage and there was no longer a relationship between you and Jolene. That was a complete lie."

https://twitter.com/TeamNews24
 
Prosecutor: To explain that lie, you said you don't like confrontation. You shy away from it. You avoid things and hope they will go away. Jason: "On emotional issues yes. In business, I can confront things and sort them out".

Prosecutor: You decided you are not going to choose between the women but have them both. Your plan was to live a double life. Jason: "Leading up to Spier, I had seriously thought about divorce as being an option, the way forward".

Jason: I had mentioned it [divorce] to Susan and during marriage counselling. I had never taken concrete steps by going to divorce attorney or working out financials. During major arguments, I mentioned it to hurt her/spite her. We fought every single day.

Prosecutor is Louis van Niekerk. He stares straight at Jason. Jason answers while looking straight ahead, not at him.

https://twitter.com/TeamNews24
 
Jason explains they had been to marriage counselling before but relationship had never disintegrated to the point of discussing divorce. Until his wife discovered Jolene's letter on 27 February 2016.

Prosecutor says in his EIC, he said Susan was "exceptionally healthy". Despite being stressed out by affair, she kept up her rhythm and health in general. Jason disagrees. "She lost an incredible amount of weight. She was already thin to begin with".

Jason: "She looked completely drawn out. Stressed. I could tell that it [the affair] was affecting her on a physical level but I can't comment on a medical level"

Prosecutor says Jason has been quite "candid" about his affair and double life. "Fair to say, that confronted with an emotional issue like this, [ducking and diving] is your only way to get away from it". Jason agrees.

https://twitter.com/TeamNews24
 
Jason: "Bottom line is you have got to be deceitful. Otherwise it's not an affair."

Prosecutor says Jason didn't want Susan to come to Sotheby's convention because she would have embarrassed him in front of his colleagues. Jason says he did have a selfish motive but also "didn't want to rub it in her face".

Prosecutor turns to Susan flying to Cape Town after discovering affair. She did not end up going into the Sotheby's office and confronting Jolene. Says that he hoped the same thing would happen when Susan attended the convention. Jason agrees.

Prosecutor asks what he means by saying he "rekindled" relationship with Jolene. He replies that he communicated with her electronically and a few weeks later, met with her in person. "I would have had a physical encounter with her I am sure. I am 99% sure".

https://twitter.com/TeamNews24
 
Prosecutor says "come on man, 99% sure? Did you have sex with her?" Defence jumps up at confusing phase of "sleeping over". Jason confirms he had intercourse with Jolene.

Prosecutor says Jason made a "conscious decision" to lie to Susan and to his daughters too about being a committed husband, a family. "I think that is a very hard assessment but if you want to put it like that, the lie would have encompassed them too."

Prosecutor: Your daughters picked up stress between you and your wife. Jason: correct. Prosecutor: They weren't told about your other relationship?

Jason: That is not correct. Our kids were always on our phones. After Susan had a copy of letter from Jolene, our middle daughter looked through our photos and came across the letter.

https://twitter.com/TeamNews24
 
JudgeJudi said:
Jason explains they had been to marriage counselling before but relationship had never disintegrated to the point of discussing divorce. Until his wife discovered Jolene's letter on 27 February 2016.

Prosecutor says in his EIC, he said Susan was "exceptionally healthy". Despite being stressed out by affair, she kept up her rhythm and health in general. Jason disagrees. "She lost an incredible amount of weight. She was already thin to begin with".

Jason: "She looked completely drawn out. Stressed. I could tell that it [the affair] was affecting her on a physical level but I can't comment on a medical level"

Prosecutor says Jason has been quite "candid" about his affair and double life. "Fair to say, that confronted with an emotional issue like this, [ducking and diving] is your only way to get away from it". Jason agrees.

https://twitter.com/TeamNews24
Click to expand...

Great.
Prosecutor, right from the start, is pointing to Rohde's lies, contradictions.
Hope this continues: not 'absolutely correct' anymore in all Rohde's statements.
 
Jason: I was devastated that she would read that. We discussed it with psychologist. Susan and I agreed to delete our communications on Whatsapp because the kids were always on our phones. I was just upset that she had to be part of that part of our lives.

Jason: Susan discussed the affair with our daughter. I didn't have that discussion. "If you say I avoided it, then I avoided it." He says his wife explained to her they were having difficulties and trying to work it out.

Jason says the affair must have upset his daughter greatly. He didn't want his children to be part of the "ugliness".

Jason says that he doesn't know what his daughter was thinking. But sure she didn't think he was still having affair

https://twitter.com/TeamNews24
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

DNASolves

Who is Escambia County John Doe (1989)?

Members online

... and 69 more.
Total: 1,964 (members: 70, guests: 1,894)

Online statistics

Members online
70
Guests online
1,894
Total visitors
1,964
Totals may include hidden visitors.

Forum statistics

Threads
600,910
Messages
18,115,558
Members
230,991
Latest member
DeeKay
Back
Top