On Wednesday, 20 September 2021, Linda Samantha Carolina Venter, 29-years-old, was convicted to 40 years of direct imprisonment for business robbery and the fatal shooting of Dr. Freddy Malan, who was a well-known veterinarian of Pretoria Moot.
Dr. Malan, who was the owner of the Jacaranda Animal Hospital, was shot and killed at his practice during a business robbery on 31 January 2019 in Moot. Three unknown armed suspects, one woman, and two men stormed into the business where they held up the personnel and a customer inside the practice then robbed them of equipment and personal belongings.
During the robbery, Dr. Malan was shot and killed by one of the suspects. The suspects fled with the stolen items in a silver Nissan Tiida.
Detectives from the Pretoria Moot Trio Task Team under the leadership of Warrant Officer Dennis Motlhaoleng were assigned to investigate the case. The suspects were swiftly linked to another case in the East Rand. A detective from Boksburg Trio Task Team, Warrant Officer Robert Ngomane joined the investigation team after they identified that their respective cases had a similar modus operandi.
The team pieced all the available evidence together and positively linked the suspects to both cases in Pretoria Moot and Boksburg. Venter was arrested during the month of September 2019 and has since been in custody at Boksburg prison.
When asked how he felt about the successful conviction, detective Warrant Officer Motlhaoleng said this is one of the best highlights of his career spanning over 30 years in the SAPS. He said it is a proud moment that he will always remember.
Station Commander for Pretoria Moot SAPS, Colonel Hlengeni Giben Mashaba, welcomed the heavy sentence that was handed down by the Court. He applauded and thanked the team for working tirelessly in ensuring that justice has been served.