AS accused Steveno van Rhyn faced tough cross-examination at the Western Cape High Court, much of the focus turned to Judge Nathan Erasmus, who paused proceedings to offer firm guidance on how questioning should be handled, emphasising fairness, simplicity, and comprehension.
Judge Erasmus addressed concerns about Van Rhyn’s low level of education, reminding the court that the accused did not pass Standard 4 (Grade 6) and may struggle with complex legal phrasing.
“I am very conscious of your level of education,” Erasmus told Van Rhyn directly.
“It doesn’t mean that you are not intelligent enough, I just don’t want you to trip up because of the court setting or that we are using long sentences and big words, because your life is on the line here, literally.”
This came after Senior Prosecutor Advocate Zelda Swanepoel began cross-examination, challenging inconsistencies in Van Rhyn’s version of events regarding his alleged torture and arrest.
Judge Erasmus advised Swanepoel to simplify her questions and ask them in a more direct, leading format to avoid confusion.
“The key is, Ms Swanepoel, we must remember that while your witnesses may be seasoned in court, Mr Van Rhyn is not,” Erasmus said.
He added that if something put to police witnesses earlier was incorrect, Van Rhyn may not have understood it well enough to raise it with his lawyer at the time.
Van Rhyn claimed the police tortured him into giving a false confession in the disappearance of six-year-old Joshlin Smith, who vanished from her home in Middelpos, Saldanha Bay, on February 19, 2024.
Her mother, Racquel "Kelly" Smith, left her in the care of her boyfriend, Jacquen "Boeta" Appollis. Both, along with Van Rhyn and later Maka Lima, were arrested in connection with the case.
They were charged with kidnapping and human trafficking.
The charges were dropped against Maka Lima a week later.
A trial-within-a-trial is currently underway to determine the admissibility of statements allegedly made under duress by Van Rhyn and Appollis.
Van Rhyn testified that police did not show him a warrant of arrest or inform him of his rights when they took him to Jacobsbaai Beach on March 4, 2024.
There, he claimed, he was handcuffed, assaulted, and had a firearm forced into his mouth. He stated that this mistreatment continued at the Sea Border offices in Saldanha.
He described how police showed him Appollis “hanging” in a room, then made him undress and suspended him between two chairs using an aluminium pipe behind his knees.
“They put a black plastic bag over my head and pushed my head back and forth,” he said. “When I said I didn’t know what happened to Joshlin, they hit me and told me to stop talking s**t.”
The accused claimed that Sergeant Felicia Johnson, who testified earlier in the trial, was in the room during the torture.
Van Rhyn also recalled one officer mocking him over not attending his mother’s funeral. Another accused him of handing Joshlin over to former co-accused Lima. Van Rhyn confirmed he knew Lima and provided her address.
He said he was taken to Lima's home in the middle of the night, where she and her family were taken to the Sea Border offices.
Cape Times