Emmanuel Mbense Murder: Sixth Accused Joins Julius Mkhwanazi and Others in High-Profile Court Case

• Jaun Maree Eksteen appeared in court on 13 August 2026, alongside Julius Mkhwanazi and four others
• Eksteen is the wife of Wiandre Pretorius, a suspect in the 2022 murder case of Emmanuel Mbense
• Pretorius had also been under investigation for the assassination of Witness D, Marius van der Merwe

GAUTENG – The wife of Wiandre Pretorius has been formally added to the Emmanuel Mbensei murder case.

Wiandre Pretorius was a suspect who had been implicated in the Mbense case and was under investigation for the assassination of Witness D, Marius van der Merwe. He died by suicide in early 2026.

His wife, Jaun Maree Eksteen, has now joined Commissioner Julius Mkhwanazi, Cobus Janse van Rensburg, Bhekokwakhe Sibande, Adrian Mackenzie, and Kersha-Leigh in court on 13 August 2026, in connection with the April 2022 murder.

Mbense, a 51-year-old father of five, was tortured and killed after being implicated in a business robbery. His body was dumped at the Duduza dam in the Nigel area.

Read also

Reiger Park murders: Police probe possible gang initiation motive behind killing of AGU officers

Details of Mbense’s murder came to light at Madlanga Commission

For three years, the full circumstances of his death remained largely concealed from his family. The case resurfaced in November 2025 when van der Merwe, testifying before the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry under the identity of Witness D, confessed to dumping Mbense’s body in the dam.

He claimed that he did so under the instruction of Mkhwanazi, the suspended Ekurhuleni Metro Police Department (EMPD) Deputy Chief.

Police raid property of Mbense murder suspect

Briefly News reported that Gauteng police raided a property belonging to a suspect linked to the 2022 murder of Mbense.

Etienne van de Walt, whose property was raided, was implicated in the murder by Marius van der Merwe's testimony.

South Africans weighed in on the raids on properties, sharing mixed reactions to the news that police were taking action.

Source: Briefly News