Culpable homicide case withdrawn due to SAPS failure to properly investigate deadly crash
AfriForum’s Private Prosecution Unit has once again been tasked to investigate the police’s failure to complete a forensic investigation into a car crash, 19 months after the collision that killed wife and mother Danielle van Jaarsveld. Gareth Webster is accused of speeding when the Audi SQ5 performance SUV he was driving collided with Van Jaarsveld’s Kia sedan on 6 November 2022.
The unit represents Van Jaarsveld’s sister, Desiree Keating, and has written to the National Prosecuting Authority to raise several concerns about the investigation and to urge that the case be finalised as soon as possible. George SAPS is responsible for the investigation.
The crash took place on Swartvlei Beach Road, a few hundred metres from the Sedge Links Golf Course in Sedgefield, where Webster was attending a golf day. Surveillance footage shows how the force of the impact launched the Kia backwards in the direction it was coming from before rolling several times onto the side of the road. The SQ5 belonged to Webster’s employer, Audi Centre George.
Webster and his passenger, who was also a golf day attendee, escaped without serious injuries. Van Jaarsveld died on the way to the hospital while her passenger Monique van Zyl, her sister-in-law, suffered serious injuries. The pair were on their way to the beach.
Webster made his first court appearance on a charge of culpable homicide on 3 October 2023. However, after several postponements, the state provisionally withdrew the case on 13 March because the police had not completed a forensic report. Van Jaarsveld’s family was also told that eyewitness statements as well as the video footage of the crash were not included in the docket. The case has not been re-enrolled.
Private Prosecution Unit spokesperson Barry Bateman says there is ample evidence to prosecute Webster. “The police’s inability to complete an accident report, followed by the withdrawal of the culpable homicide case against Webster, is yet another example of the state’s lack of appreciation of the seriousness of the offence and the implications these delays have for Danielle’s family.”
Keating says the complete failure by the police to properly investigate the incident, and the ongoing delays, compelled them to turn to the Private Prosecution Unit for help. “Our family is profoundly frustrated regarding the slow pace approach and attitude of SAPS in investigating the tragic death of my sister Danielle.
“We are deeply troubled by their apparent bias and leniency shown towards the accused. Our family seeks nothing less than justice for Danielle. We know that there are indeed eyewitnesses, video footage, as well as the vehicles themselves to indicate Webster’s wrongdoing. We have repeatedly voiced our concerns about the investigation’s various shortcomings, especially regarding the forensic reports. It is disheartening to know that with all the compelling evidence the accused still walks free,” said Keating.
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