On Wednesday 5 February, two men appeared in the Cape Town high court, for robbing and killing a motorcyclist in September 2018.
According to IOL, Judge Salie-Hlophe said to the two accused, “You went about like wolves, walking through nearby bushes looking for a victim, armed with a firearm to rob at all costs. You prowled around the streets looking for someone to rob and kill. A defenceless woman was robbed of her possessions and she was fatally wounded. The killing of a woman is an awful scourge which we face as a society.”
Cheryl Sandman, a member of Bikers With a Cause said: “Zelda was waiting for me and I was at the petrol station. She phoned me and we chatted. She was standing on the N1 when she sent me a WhatsApp, jokingly telling me she had arrived. I arrived and found her lying there. I will never forget her face, how she was looking at me. It felt like hours before somebody came to help.”
IOL reported that the two suspects, Lucian Ackerman and Michael Pietersen shared their detailed statement leading up to the day Van Niekerk had died. The two accused got handed their sentence with Pietersen receiving a total of 30 years imprisonment for murder and robbery. However as reported by IOL “with aggravating circumstances with five years running concurrently, meaning he may serve an effective 25 years.” And Lucian Ackerman was sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder, 15 years for robbery with aggravating circumstances, 10 years for the possession of an illegal firearm and five years for the possession of ammunition.
In support, many other biker clubs attended the sentencing and shared their fear, sharing that their freedom has been taken from them.
