On July 8, 2018, the accused travelled from Gauteng to Mbombela, where he went to Macadamia Old Age Home and robbed and killed Henrietta Catharina Potgieter (85).
He was arrested and was later released on bail after his persistent bail applications.
READ: Alleged battery thief arrested in Bushbuckridge
While he was out, the accused further committed another murder of an elderly resident, Barbara Esmé Fenton (74), by strangling her to death on September 1, 2018, at her home in Alberton.
The Hawks’ investigation led to the arrest of Oosthuizen immediately after the incident, and he was further linked to another murder that had occurred on June 24, 2018, when Engela van Wyk (86) was killed and robbed at Rus ‘n Bietjie Old Age Home in Springs.
READ: G4S van bombed and guard shot in cash-in-transit heist
The case was finalised. The accused was found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment for Van Wyk’s murder and 15 years’ imprisonment for robbery with aggravating circumstances.
In December 2019, Oosthuizen was sentenced to life imprisonment for Fenton’s death and 20 years’ imprisonment for robbery with aggravating circumstances.
He will serve a total of three life sentences for killing three old women and 50 years for robbing them.
The provincial head for the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation in Mpumalanga, Maj Gen Zodwa Mokoena, has welcomed the ruling and applauded the investigating team for securing a life sentence.
“We appreciate the collaboration between the investigators and judiciary for ensuring that the heartless criminal who tormented the elderly, who could not fight for themselves, is removed from the community,” she said.
