The dom hitman, who tried to shoot alleged gang boss Jerome “Donkie” Booysen at a shopping mall, will spend the next 18 years in the mang for accidentally killing his accomplice instead.
Nearly two years after the botched hit at a restaurant in Soneike Mall in Kuils River, the would-be assassin, Marco Johannes, entered into a plea deal with the State in which he admitted to trying to kill Donkie and Fatima van der Westhuizen.
Johannes, who was originally charged with attempted murder, was then also charged for the shooting of his accomplice, Simon Yon.
The attack, took place on 1 August 2018, saw the Spur restaurant covered with blood as Donkie, the suspected boss of the Sexy Boys gang, dodged death for the sixth time as he only sustained a gunshot wound to the arm.
In his confession, Johannes explained that he accompanied Yon, who was his girlfriend’s father, to Soneike Mall where Yon got a call and told Johannes he had to go and kill someone at Spur.
After being handed a gun by another person, the duo went to Spur where they sat just metres away from Donkie and Van der Westhuizen.
“We ordered cooldrinks from the waiter and after drinking our cooldrinks, we stood up and both of us started firing several shots at the intended target and a female person who was seated with him,” the confession reads.
Johannes says an unknown male fired back at them and Yon suddenly moved in front of him and he shot his accomplice in the head.
Yon died on the scene and at the time, a source close to the investigation told the Daily Voice he had Hard Livings gang tattoos on his body.
National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson Eric Ntabazalila says Johannes was sentenced to a total of 34 years imprisonment at the Blue Downs Regional Court on Tuesday.
“The court sentenced Johannes to 18 years imprisonment for murder of Yon, three years for the attempted murder of Booysen, three years for the attempted murder of Van der Westhuizen, three years for illegal possession of a firearm and seven years for illegal possession of ammunition. It ordered that all the sentences run concurrently.”