S v Sauls and Others

• Jurisdiction: South Africa
• Judge: Diemont JA, Cillié JA, Van Heerden AJA
• Judgment Date: 19 March 1981
• Citation: 1981 (3) SA 172 (A)
• Hearing Date: 23 February 1981
• Court: Appellate Division

Diemont, JA.:

In the early morning of Wednesday 21 March 1979 the body of a young convict, Isak Fielies, was found in cell No 40 in the maximum A security section of the Victor Verster Prison. Fielies had been murdered. The post-mortem examination established that he had been strangled with a canvas prison belt or rope and that there was a ligature mark round his neck. This mark showed a 4 centimetre gap at the back of the neck suggesting that the two ends of the belt did not meet. There were in B addition several incised wounds with irregular edges on both sides of the neck caused by a sharp instrument such as a razor blade or a knife and cleary inflicted after death.

The prison cell in which the deceased was killed was a small one measuring 3,8 by 2,85 metres (or approximately 12 feet by 9 feet) and when the space occupied by the wash and toilet facilities was taken into account it seems C that there was little more than 8 feet left to accommodate five sleeping mats. There was a double door to the cell, the outer steel door opening outward and the inner barred door opening inward. In addition there was a small inspection window near the door, 35 metre in width, and a long window running most of the length of the cell which admitted sufficient D light at night by which to read.

The five inmates of the cell were Saggeus Sauls, Gert Louw and Freddie Slabbert (appellants Nos 1, 2 and 3), the deceased Isak Fielies and a fifth man, Robert Lennox, who played a key role in the proceedings to which I shall now refer.

The three appellants were charged with murder in the Supreme Court in E Cape Town on 30 May 1980, that is some 14 months after the commission of the crime. The accused denied all knowledge of the killing and pleaded not guilty.

Robert Lennox was called as a State witness. The weight to be attached to F his evidence became a critical issue at the trial and took up much of the argument on appeal in this Court. The story which this witness told the Court was clear and straightforward. He said that he had occupied the cell for six days and that on the Tuesday, 20 March, he had spent the day in the cell without food, as a punishment for failing to break sufficient stones in the previous week. Appellant No 2 was also being punished and G had spent that day in the cell. At 5 pm appellants Nos 1 and 3 and the deceased returned to the cell where they passed the time in talk and smoking until 8 pm when the bell went and the cell light was extinguished. Each may lay down in his accustomed place - appellant No 1 next to the door, then in sequence, appellant No 2, appellant No 3, Lennox and the H deceased, Fielies (their positions were denoted by the letter A, B, C, D and E on the plan of the cell, exh B, which was handed in). Presently appellant No 1 called Fielies who stood up, took his blankets and went and lay down at B, that is between appellants Nos 1 and 2. Lennox then turned over on his side to face the shower wall and went to sleep. What follows is best told in Lennox's own words:

"Wat gebeur toe? - Ek het geslaap. Die nag toe hoor ek 'n snikkery baas.

Jy hoor 'n snikkery. Was jy wakker gewees, het jy van jou eie wakker geword en toe hoor jy 'n snikkery of het iets jou wakker gemaak? - Daai snikkery het vir my wakker gemaak.

Diemont JA

Hof: Sê jy snik of sluk? - Snik baas, amper soos een nou so gaan "Ghraa... ghraa". Roggelgeluide? - Ja baas.

Mnr Maartens: Die tyd toe jy daarvan wakker word, wat sien jy toe? - A Toe sien ek nr 1 en nr 2 hulle choke die vir Brother, hulle choke hom met belde en nr 3 staan by die venster.

Die tyd toe jy nou wakker word, jy maak nou jou oê oop, kan jy nou sê was die lig in die sel toe nog aan of af? - Die lig was af gewees baas but daar brand 'n lig bo-op die stoep, wat skyn binne-in die kamer.

Reg, nou kom ons weer terug na wat jy gesien het.

Kyk daar voor jou in die getuiebank lê so 'n groen belt, sien jy hom? - Ja baas.

B Herken jy die belt? Ken jy die soort belt? - Reg baas.

Kan jy vir die Hof beduie, wys hoe jy nou gesien het dat hulle hom choke? - Hulle het die belt om sy nek gehet so. Nr 1 het hom aan die een punt gehet die belt en nr 2 het aan die ander punt gehet en hulle het gelê toe en toe het hulle hom gechoke het, het hy net sulke rukke afgegee baas.

Hof: Wie het nou getrek aan die belt? - Nr 1 en nr 2 baas.

C Een aan elke punt van die belt? - Ja baas, nr 1 het aan die een punt gehet en nr 2 het aan die ander punt gehet."

At this stage Lennox asked what was happening; he was told that he would be informed later, or to use his own words "toe sê hulle vir my ek sal agterna volraak". When he was told to cover his head he pulled the D blankets up but in such a way that he could still watch what was happening.

"Wat sien jy toe, wat doen beskuldigde 3, dis nou Boetie wat daar by die venster staan of by die muur staan? - By die venster staan, wat die man klaar daar stil lê baas wat hy nou klaar die rukke afgegee het, toe het nr 1 gevra vir nr 3 waar die blade is.

............

E Mnr Maartens: Sien jy toe wat Boetie doen nadat hy so vir hom vra? - Boetie het weggegaan van die venster af baas. Hy het gegaan tot by sy kooi en hy het onder sy kopkussing -

Sy kooi, kan jy net weer wys daarso, as ek nou reg verstaan was jy daardie tyd daar op D gewees nê? - Reg baas en hy was by C gewees.

Hy was by C gewees? Is dit nou die kooi wat jy van praat waarnatoe hy F gekom het? - Reg baas. Wat doen hy toe? - Hy het onder sy kopkussing, wat hy met sy kop op lê, het hy die blade uitgehaal en hy het die blade oorgegee aan nr 2.

Het hy na hulle toe gegaan? - Ja baas, hy het gegaan tot by nr 2 en hy het toe die blade vir nr 2 gegee.

Kon jy sien wat toe gebeur? - Ek het nie gesien wat het toe gebeur nie baas want die man wat hulle nou gechoke het, sy kop was toe gewees.

G Van wat? - Van die komberse, sy kop was toegetrek gewees en toe kan ek nie sien wie van hulle drie het gesny aan die man nie.

Jy sê nou jy kon nie sien wie van hulle drie het gesny nie? - Reg baas."

After the killing appellant No 1 lay down next to Lennox and said to hom "as die boere môre gaan kom dan moet ek net sê ek dra geen kennis nie ek H het geslaap". He was told to move up so that he now lay at E next to the shower while the deceased lay at A next to the door. Lennox said he could not go to sleep again "ek was, hoe sê hulle, bewerig gewees baas... ek was bang gewees baas".

When the time came for them to get up the deceased was rolled in a blanket and a mat. Presently the prison warders arrived:

"Het daar toe op enige tyd mense, kom sluit die mense die selle oop? - Reg baas.

"Het dit toe so gebeur die oggend? - Reg baas, daar was 'n sersant gewees en 'n ander bewaarder, 'n Witman. Die sersant het oopgesluit en toe vra die sersant hoekom lê die man so stil hierso, hoekom staan die man nie op nie en

Diemont JA

toe roep die sersant vir die baas wat saam met die sersant is en toe het die baas klaar die meeste afgehaal en toe stoot die sersant die grill oop. Toe die sersant die grill oopgestoot het, toe vat die baas aan die man wat dood lê, Izak, toe sê hy: "Die man is klaar." Daarvandaan het hy gegaan by die man se kop en toe het hy die man wat dood is, het so gelê.

Hof: Jy wys met jou twee hande so onder jou ken. Die arms gevou op die bors? - Ja baas.

Het hy gelê amper soos hy nou lyk daar op die foto A3 of hoe? - Hy het nie so gelê nie baas.

Foto A2, hy lê op sy maag? - Op sy maag ja oubaas."

B When the officer who was in charge of that section of the prison arrived he questioned each man and was told by each in turn that he had no knowledge of Fielies' death. Later in the day Lennox was interviewed by a detective and volunteered to make a statement before a magistrate. He was taken to Paarl and made a short statement of the facts to which he later deposed in the witness-box.

C After the State case was closed the appellants each gave evidence, and each in turn averred that he had been asleep and at no stage had seen or heard anything untoward or had witnessed any assault on the deceased.

After a trial which lasted some eight days, BAKER J, assisted by two D assessors, gave a lengthy and well-reasoned judgment in which he came to the conclusion that Lennox had told the truth, that the three appellants had lied, that they...