| Legalbrief | your legal news hub | Wednesday 22 January 2025 |
A 55-year-old woman has been arrested in connection with the murder of Western Cape High Court Acting Judge Patrick Maqubela, nine months after his bloodied body was found in his Bantry Bay, Cape Town flat, notes a Cape Times report.
Maqubela was found dead in bed on 7 June 2009. His body was wrapped in a sheet and a bloodied pillow covered his face. Police initially suspected that he had died of a heart attack. A post-mortem was conducted and its results were also declared to be inconclusive. Police then announced that they were investigating a case of murder. A third attempt to identify the cause of death involved toxicology tests. This, too, was inconclusive. Full Cape Times report
Colleagues of Maqubela said the couple had marital problems and there was talk of divorce. A report in Die Burger says Thandi Maqubela's cellphone records allegedly contradict her version of events given to the police. The records show that she made several calls from Qumbu in the Eastern Cape and sent SMSes to several people, including the Minister of Justice. The report says the judge had a R20m life insurance policy and his estate was estimated to be worth between R15m and R20m. A Cape Times report says about two days before his death, Maqubela told his friend of 20 years, Judge Jake Moloi, that he planned to divorce his wife and was surprised by her unexpected visit to Cape Town that week. 'It was not a good marriage. That I know for a fact. He told me he was contemplating divorce,' Moloi told the paper. The judges were in a Cape Town restaurant having a meal when Maqubela hastily excused himself, saying his wife was here for reasons unknown to him and he had to go. That was the last time Moloi saw his friend alive. Full report in Die BurgerFull Cape Times report (subscription needed)
The arrest has been welcomed, according to a report in The Times. Maqubela's cousin, Sithembele Somyalo, said he was relieved that someone was 'finally arrested for his death'. 'Now the law should take its course. His death didn't make sense. We always suspected that there was something sinister about his death,' Somyalo said. Police spokesperson Superintendent Andre Traut said the suspect - whom he would not name as Maqubela's wife - had been detained and will appear in the Cape Town Magistrate's Court on Monday. Maqubela was a former Robben Island detainee. He worked as an advocate in Johannesburg before he was asked to serve as an acting judge on the Cape Bench in 2008. Full report in The Times