R50K reward offered for info on slain Yolandi Botes

A reward has been offered for information that could lead to the arrest and successful prosecution of the individuals responsible for the murder of Yolandi Botes.

Yolandi Botes case: R50,000 reward

A family spokesperson this week thanked supporters who made the reward possible.

“We cannot solve the murder ourselves, but we can help get the reward poster out of there. We not only want to do this for Yolandi; we want to prevent those who murdered her from ever doing the same to anyone else.”

The family asked Facebook users to share the reward poster across all social media platforms, and if possible, “print a few posters and put it up at shopping centres in your area”.

“We would like to have posters up in every town. If there is individuals or companies, that would like to sponsor banners, we would like to put it up at busy intersections, it does not have to be big banners, just big enough to attract attention.”

Bloody room in Kempton Park

A week after Botes went missing, a knife was found in a bloody room at the Oceanic Lodge in Kempton Park on 3 May. However, investigating officers failed to collect samples from the scene in a timeous manner.

At the time, Gauteng South African Police Service (Saps) spokesperson Captain Mavela Masondo said: “Two officers were supposed to summon the forensic experts to the scene immediately, but that was only done after two days.

“The samples were eventually collected by forensic experts and taken to a laboratory for examination”.

Mike Bolhuis, a private investigator appointed by the family, said the blood found in the Kempton Park guesthouse does not belong to Botes, but to a yet-to-be-identified male.

Bolhuis said someone close to Botes is “hiding something”.

ALSO READ: Yolandi Botes: Forensic experts only called to bloody B&B room two days later

Yolandi Botes’s disappearance

The series of events leading to her death varies, with initial reports indicating she was last seen on 26 April after catching an early morning flight from George in the Western Cape to OR Tambo International Airport.

This was to visit her children for three days. It was believed she requested an Uber ride but was never seen again. She was reported missing in Brakpan on 26 April. 

According to Maroela Media, Botes hired a car at the airport and drove to a shopping centre in Edenvale. She was said to have then entered a private vehicle. 

A father and son discovered her body parts while on a fishing trip at a holiday resort in Villiers next to the Vaal River. She was identified after a unique tattoo was discovered. 

Additional reporting by Nica Richards.