The much-anticipated trial of the man accused of kidnapping and murdering Tazne van Wyk has been put on hold again due to a new defence lawyer being assigned to the case.
The suspect, Moehydian Pangaker, appeared in the Western Cape High Court on Monday where members of civil organisations packed the public gallery hoping to get a glimpse of the man who allegedly butchered the eight-year-old meisie from Ravensmead.
Pangaker faces a total of 20 charges which include rape, murder, sexual assault, kidnapping and defeating the ends of justice, with cases dating back to 2016.
The Grade 3 pupil from Eurecon Primary School went missing on 7 February 2020 when she was snatched just metres from her home in Clare Street, Ravensmead.
Hundreds of mense descended on the Cape Flats community as they searched for the child.
Pangaker’s relatives told cops that at the same time, he also disappeared and cops went on the hunt for him.
He was later arrested in Cradock in the Eastern Cape and while on his way to Cape Town he told cops where to find her body, which he had dumped in a stormwater drain in Worcester.
Shocking court documents have revealed that Tazne had been raped, killed and her hand cut off just a day after she went missing.
On Monday Pangaker’s new Legal Aid asked for time to consult with Pangaker.
The case was postponed for 48 hours to Wednesday for plea and trial. Tazne’s parents were not present at court.
According to the indictment, Pangaker is also accused of raping a woman on a veldjie in Ladismith in 2016 and during the period between 2016 and 2019, he also raped a minor girl.
In 2019, he allegedly tied the same child up in a house in Worcester and threatened to kill her if she reported the rapes.
He has also been charged with incest for impregnating a relative.