Two suspects arrested in relation to the gruesome murder of John (78) and Bina Cross (76) in the Gravolette area in Limpopo on April 16, 2000 (17 years ago) are applying for parole.
Ephraim Mokwena and Michael Malemela were both found guilty of the horrific murder of the Cross couple who were both tortured and shot.
The couple was returning from church on, April 16, 2000, and the two suspects were already in the house when the pair entered. Apparently, Malemela once worked for the Cross couple. According to their daughter, the suspects had already found John’s firearms before the couple returned.
The suspects tortured both Johan and his wife for five hours a poured boiling water over Bina and shot her three times. She did not die immediately but lay on the floor and bled to death.
John was shot once in his thigh and hit extensively on his head. Shortly afterward he was again shot with a .22 gun. The suspects then tied him up and put him into a bath, and the boiling hot water from the shower-head forced down his throat. Eventually, the murderers shot him while still in the tub, for the third time killing him instantly.
According to the police, a postmortem report revealed that the boiling water burnt John’s throat and that his stomach was full of water.
Mokwena and Malemela stole jewelry, money, valuable household items, firearms and fled in the couple’s car. The murderers were both caught and arrested the following day. Both Mokwena and Malemela were found guilty of the double murder and received a deserving sentence of 50 years imprisonment. They are confined in the Thohoyandou prison.
It was during this week that both Mokwena and Malemela applied for parole. Lita Fourie, daughter of John and Bina Cross, was approached by a legal team representing the murderers, and she was asked if she could forgive the pair. Fourie said she could not, they were dangerous criminals and deserve to spend their full sentence handed down behind bars.
Fourie also believes that both Mokwena and Malemela have not been rehabilitated while in prison and stated that there are many cases when prisoners are released on parole only to commit the same horrific crimes again.
Even during the trial, Malemela appeared to have no remorse, and when told he would sit for a long time he replied, “but at least I am alive.”
Fourie also said that she had over the years received many letters from both Mokwena and Malema pleading for forgiveness and in 2006 went to Kutuma Sinthumale prison in Louis Trichardt where both were held, with the intention of finding out the truth. Fourie said she wanted to know who shot her parents, why they were tortured and what happened to the stolen items that to this day have never been recovered. Fourie never received an honest answer from the two men on why they murdered her parents. They did say they only wanted money and firearms and were under the influence of alcohol when the assault and torture took place.
Fourie said her late father was a prosecutor and had extensive knowledge of the courts and proceedings. She also mentioned that her father would not have left such a horrific case up in the air and would resolve to get to the truth. Fourie believes that both Mokwena and Malemela should not be given parole. After the shocking death of her parents, Fourie began a support group for victims of farm murders and attacks.
Zandile Mabunda, the communication manager of the Thohoyandou prison of the department of correctional services, told Maroela Media that Mokwena and Malamela will appear before the parole board. Although Mabunda did not confirm when they pair will appear. Mabunda would not say if the two had previously appeared before the parole board. There will be a process to follow before the two murderers are granted parole.
Read the original article in Afrikaans on Maroela Media
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