Cape Town - A witness in the Western Cape High Court trial of Phillip April has revealed that 26-year-old Allison Plaatjies had been threatened before she was killed.
April pleaded guilty to the murder and admitted to the court that he killed Plaatjies following an argument on October 26, 2019.
He claimed that he and Plaatjies were in a relationship when he choked her and slit her throat, but the witness testimony given on Wednesday, told a different tale.
Jevida Steenkamp, from Graafwater, said she met Plaatjies while studying at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, and became close friends when they started teaching at the same school.
She said the last time she saw Plaatjies alive was on October 25, 2019 – the Friday before she was killed. Plaatjies had come to her flat where they spoke and drank wine. There she noticed that Plaatjies was quieter than usual.
Steenkamp then revealed that Plaatjies had confided in her that the she and April were not together any more, but Steenkamp couldn’t remember exactly when they broke up. She said the relationship ended due to April’s drinking habits.
She further told the court: “Allison told me the accused said that if she would leave him, he would kill her.”
Steenkamp testified that Plaatjies told her April was “aggressive” and on one occasion he insulted her parents because he considered them “uneducated”.
During cross-examination by April’s lawyer, advocate Office Ntini, he said that in his client’s version, April and Plaatjies were in a relationship when she was killed. April further disputed that he spoke badly about her parents.
Advocate Ntini then questioned why Steenkamp had only given her statement on January 30, 2020, when Plaatjies was slain in October 2019.
Steenkamp said: “The reason why I didn’t go immediately after this, was the situation traumatised me and it was difficult for me to revisit the incident and paint a picture about how my beloved friend and colleague was killed. Even though I didn’t see it, the information Allison shared with me is important, and I felt I had to share it.”
She said she had no reason to lie to the court, and stood by what Plaatjies had confided in her. “I knew the time would come for me to speak up for Allison,” Steenkamp said.
When Ntini put it to her “When you say you want justice, you want the accused punished,” she paused before she said, “That is correct”.