February is supposed to be the month of love.
But on February 27‚ 2016‚ Susan Rohde discovered that her husband of more than two decades had been having an affair with one of the estate agents at his company.
Months later Susan's body was found in their hotel suite with a cord around her neck.
Multi-millionaire Jason Rohde appeared in the Stellenbosch Magistrate's Court on Tuesday and was formally charged with the murder of his wife and defeating the ends of justice.
According to the indictment handed to court‚ Jason started his affair with Jolene Alterskye in 2015. In a bid to save their marriage they attended couples therapy.
In July 2016 they attended a Lew Geffen/Sotheby's International Realty function at the Spier Wine Farm in Stellenbosch when he was the CEO of the Lew Geffen International Realty Franchise in South Africa. Also in attendance was Alterskye.
"During the course of the early morning of Sunday 24 July 2016 several witnesses saw the Rohde couple arguing whilst visiting one of the hotel rooms where inter alia was socialising with other Sotheby conference attendees‚'' the indictment read.
Later that morning he called the hotel reception to report that his ''bathroom is locked from the inside''. A handyman unlocked the door and saw Susan's body. She was lying on her back and had an ''electric hair iron cord‚ one part loosely around her neck‚ and the other part‚ a single strand around the clothing/towel hook at the back of the bathroom door''.
The state alleged that Jason was ''freshly dressed and shaven'' at the time.
It has also been alleged that the cord was used to stage her death as a suicide.
Jason then ''supplied false information to police''.
''The post-mortem examination conducted on the body of the deceased shows the cause of death as being: 'Consistent with asphyxia following manual strangulation and external airway obstruction. The features of the ligature imprint abrasion mark are consistent with post-mortem application to the neck.' The accused is responsible for the death of his wife‚'' the document concluded.
Jason's attorney‚ Daniel Witz‚ said that they would fight the case based on forensic evidence and said that the state's allegations of an argument over the affair was circumstantial.
"Our view is that the most important aspect of this case is the forensic evidence‚ and unless the state can overcome the forensic evidence then all the surrounding circumstances are not as relevant as the state currently think they are‚" he said.
The case is expected to be heard in the Western Cape High Court on August 18.
-TimesLIVE
Source: TMG Digital.
Multi-millionaire's wife was killed months after finding out about affair
But on February 27‚ 2016‚ Susan Rohde discovered that her husband of more than two decades had been having an affair with one of the estate agents at his company.
Months later Susan's body was found in their hotel suite with a cord around her neck.
Multi-millionaire Jason Rohde appeared in the Stellenbosch Magistrate's Court on Tuesday and was formally charged with the murder of his wife and defeating the ends of justice.
According to the indictment handed to court‚ Jason started his affair with Jolene Alterskye in 2015. In a bid to save their marriage they attended couples therapy.
In July 2016 they attended a Lew Geffen/Sotheby's International Realty function at the Spier Wine Farm in Stellenbosch when he was the CEO of the Lew Geffen International Realty Franchise in South Africa. Also in attendance was Alterskye.
"During the course of the early morning of Sunday 24 July 2016 several witnesses saw the Rohde couple arguing whilst visiting one of the hotel rooms where inter alia was socialising with other Sotheby conference attendees‚'' the indictment read.
Later that morning he called the hotel reception to report that his ''bathroom is locked from the inside''. A handyman unlocked the door and saw Susan's body. She was lying on her back and had an ''electric hair iron cord‚ one part loosely around her neck‚ and the other part‚ a single strand around the clothing/towel hook at the back of the bathroom door''.
The state alleged that Jason was ''freshly dressed and shaven'' at the time.
It has also been alleged that the cord was used to stage her death as a suicide.
Jason then ''supplied false information to police''.
''The post-mortem examination conducted on the body of the deceased shows the cause of death as being: 'Consistent with asphyxia following manual strangulation and external airway obstruction. The features of the ligature imprint abrasion mark are consistent with post-mortem application to the neck.' The accused is responsible for the death of his wife‚'' the document concluded.
Jason's attorney‚ Daniel Witz‚ said that they would fight the case based on forensic evidence and said that the state's allegations of an argument over the affair was circumstantial.
"Our view is that the most important aspect of this case is the forensic evidence‚ and unless the state can overcome the forensic evidence then all the surrounding circumstances are not as relevant as the state currently think they are‚" he said.
The case is expected to be heard in the Western Cape High Court on August 18.
-TimesLIVE
Source: TMG Digital.
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