The issue of whether or not an alarm tripped at the luxury De Zalze Estate where the Van Breda family murder took place was again raised yesterday, as a second security guard took the stand in the Western Cape High Court.
Edgar Wyngaard was also on duty the night parents Martin and Theresa van Breda and their son Rudi were slaughtered with an axe.
Their other son, Henri van Breda is standing trial for their murder and for the attempted murder of his sister, Marli.
Wyngaard was on duty with Lorenzo Afrika, who gave evidence on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Wyngaard told the court they had been on “bloodhound patrol” on the night of the murders.
He said the patrol typically took an hour-and-a-half and that while on duty on the estate, they would also go to what they determined as “high risk areas” and keep a lookout.
Wyngaard said he would drive along the inside of the perimeter fence while Afrika drove along the outside when they worked together on the estate.
Wyngaard was Afrika’s supervisor.
Defence attorney Matthys Combrink asked Wyngaard about an alarm that had tripped at 1.37am.
On Wednesday, Afrika had said that he did not know anything about the alarm and had assumed his supervisor had checked it.
When questioned about the same alarm, Wyngaard said he didn’t know anything about the alarm going off, and that Afrika had most likely checked it.
State prosecutor Susan Galloway also questioned Wyngaard about the alarms, to which he responded that if an alarm had indeed tripped, someone would have been dispatched.
But he said there had not been an alarm on the night of the murders.
Judge Siraj Desai granted Galloway’s request for a postponement until Monday, as there was video evidence she needed to review and to consult with her next witness.
Van Breda has pleaded not guilty to the murders and claims his family was attacked by a “laughing” black man, wearing a balaclava at their larney home in January 2015.