Franschoek 'bombers' free
2008-04-30
THE two young men that have been on trial for the botched kidnapping drama in Franschhoek, have walked away from court as free men. Darren le Roux (21) and Johan Smit (18) were accused of attempted robbery, intimidation, malicious damage to property and assault after Diane Pretorius, was held hostage by a masked man. Her mother, Alta, an employee of Nedbank in Franschhoek, was summoned to the flat above the bank two years ago, and on arrival she was forced to strap fake explosives around her waist and told to return to the bank and fill a bag with money. Alta returned to the bank and returned with approximately R84 000 in cash, but could not follow the robber’s instructions to the drop-off point. The police were then alerted. Smit, a friend and neighbour of Diane’s, had been visiting the Pretorius flat when the drama enfolded. The case was concluded last week, when magistrate Annemarie Immelman found the young men innocent due to lack of evidence. She directly blamed this on inadequate investigation on the part of the police.
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