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By Botho Molosankwe 
September 1, 2020
Johannesburg – An Ekurhuleni man charged with murder and rape who fled to Belgium while on bail and was a fugitive for six and a half years has pleaded not guilty to the charges before him.
News24 reports that the 42-year-old appeared in court on Monday, where he denied raping and murdering Chantelle Barnard, 20, in 2011.
Jurgen Vandekeere’s life as a fugitive came to an end in January this year after his father encouraged him to turn himself in. Vandekeere was later arrested in Pretoria and appeared in court there.
However, the matter was returned to Benoni Police Station, as it is the jurisdiction where Barnard’s murder and rape occurred.
Barnard was leaving the keys at the owner’s house in Benoni when he disappeared. His mother, Suzette, found him later that night in the house occupied by Vandekeere.
Her throat had been slit and her underwear scattered around her lifeless body.
The head of the Community Police Forum, Koekie Bianchina, had been on the scene the night of the murder and painted a detailed description of the scene for The Star at the time.
According to Bianchina, Vandekeere had allegedly been watching pornographic videos during the incident and Barnard’s body had been washed, presumably after she was murdered.
Vandekeere was arrested and abandoned his request for bail after protests outside court indicated that it could be dangerous for him to be released.
However, he reapplied and was released on bail of 20,000 rand in January 2012.
It was later discovered that he had fled the country when he failed to appear in the Delmas Superior Court in September of that year.
MESS
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