Reiger Park detective’s hard work pays off
Reiger Park SAPS detective Sergeant Marius van Wyk’s diligence in investigating cases against two violent criminals who terrorised local communities has yielded fruitful results.
Van Wyk managed to recently secure the following convictions:
• Thubelihle Sabelo (20), of Delmore informal settlement, was convicted of murder, house break-in and theft, and assault.
Sabelo was arrested after he brutally killed Simphiwe Sithebe in November 2014. In September 2014, he had also broken into someone’s shack and stolen valuable goods and brutally assaulted his ex-girlfriend. He was sentenced to 13 years imprisonment for the murder, seven years for the house break-in and three years for the assault – an effective 23 years in jail.
• Aubrey Winston Weilback (27) was convicted of murder after stabbing Simon Tuswa to death in Idada Street, Ramaphosa, on July 14, 2014. He was arrested hours later and van Wyk diligently pursued every lead to ensure the perpetrator was convicted.
Weilback was found guilty of the murder on November 1 and sentenced to 13 years imprisonment. He was also declared unfit to possess a firearm.
The Reiger Park born and bred van Wyk said he sometimes had to work into the evening and over weekends to make sure that justice was served.
He joined the SAPS about 15 years ago and has been working as a detective since 2006.
“I do what is good for my community, and I hope these recent hefty sentences will send a clear message to like-minded would-be offenders that we will trace them, arrest them and make sure that they end up in jail,” said van Wyk.
He said the lack of sufficient evidence to link a suspect to a crime is the main stumbling block to securing convictions. He, however, offered advice to his colleagues, saying little or insufficient evidence should not put investigators off because even the least bit of evidence can often lead to something big. -@FanieFLK
