Publication: Cape Argus Issued: Date: 2005-11-19 Reporter: Chiara Carter Reporter: Sheena Adams

Kebble Was Near Murder Site the Day Before He Died

 

Publication 

Cape Argus

Date

2005-11-19

Reporter

 Chiara Carter, Sheena Adams

Web Link

www.capeargus.co.za

 

Twenty-four hours before controversial business tycoon Brett Kebble was gunned down near the Melrose Bird Sanctuary in Johannesburg, he spent at least half an hour near the very spot where he was to die.

Sources close to the probes into Kebble's murder say cellphone records indicate that Kebble made a series of phone calls the night before he died from the area where he was murdered.

It is not yet known exactly where Kebble was when he made the calls - in the sanctuary, at a house in the area, or in his car. Several of these calls were to a single acquaintance.

That Kebble spent time in the area the night before his death lends weight to the theory that, instead of being the victim of a random hijacking attempt, Kebble, in fact, met someone he knew before he was murdered.

However, it is also possible that the killer merely knew that he used the lonely stretch of road and ambushed him through some ruse.

The driver's window was open, which has been interpreted as indicating that Kebble interacted with and possibly trusted the killer.

Kebble was shot at the end of September at very close range by someone firing from the driver's side with a specialised weapon used by special forces or security personnel involved in crowd control. A bullet is thought to have gone through the rear window from the inside outwards.

Police management has banned staff from commenting on any aspect of the Kebble investigation and police this week declined to comment on the progress of the investigation. However, national police spokesperson Sally de Beer did not deny that police had scrutinised Kebble's phone records.

Independent forensic expert David Klatzow has mooted the possibility that Kebble may have staged his own murder after taking out life insurance policies worth at least R10 million, a theory rejected by his family and business associates. At the time of his death Kebble was reeling from a series of business woes and faced a huge tax bill.

With acknowledgements to Chiara Carter, Sheena Adams and Cape Argus.


It's still "my theory".