Cape Town - Two women from Hermanus on Thursday appeared in court for the murder of 46-year-old mother Sophie van Wyk.
Anna Arendse and a pregnant Wilma Vermeulen have been charged with the murder of Van Wyk after she was stabbed to death at her home in Mount Pleasant on June 26, 2018.
The State said the two women stabbed Van Wyk with a knife and strangled her with an electrical cord.
Further details surrounding the murder of Van Wyk indicate she was stabbed in the back and the knife penetrated her lung which led to her death.
A key State witness was Van Wyk’s daughter, who cannot be named; she had discovered the body and saw the two accused at the scene of the crime from a window. She further identified the two women, and gave evidence one of the accused held the cord in her hand. This cord had been tied around her mother’s neck.
She also said they were full of blood when she saw them.
During proceedings, a forensic pathologist was called by State prosecutor Harold Engelbrecht to clarify details about an incorrect pathologist report on the cause of death. The pathologist was called to clarify an error made in identifying the cause of death as being murder by electrocution instead of murder by stabbing. The correct report was handed in as evidence.
The accused were known to Van Wyk, as they all lived in the same area.
At court the family were upset and too emotional to comment. The two women have pleaded not guilty and are out on bail.