Yesterday, the South Gauteng High Court handed down guilty verdicts to the infamous Krugersdorp Killers, whose crimes have shocked the country.

They are clearly very disturbed people, with ringleader Cecilia Steyn having told people that she was ‘the bride of Satan’.

37-year-old Steyn was found guilty of murder, along with Marcel Steyn, 21, and Zak Valentine, 33, and the trio were also nailed on a number of other charges.

In a prior trial, Marcel’s mother, Marinda Steyn, 51, was sentenced to 11 life terms for her role in the murders, and Marcel’s brother, Le Roux Steyn, entered a plea bargain with the State.

TimesLIVE reports:

They were all part of Electus Per Deus, a group that viewed themselves as chosen by God, which allegedly killed 11 people between 2012 and 2016…

In finding the trio guilty, judge Ellem Francis rejected the evidence given by Cecilia, Marcel and Valentine. He said they had been part of an “enterprise”, with Cecilia being the mastermind and the beneficiary of the proceeds.

The court described Cecilia as an instigator, a master of deception, a pathological liar and the person who issued instructions and manipulated her co-accused…

“It has been shown that she lied about her need for spiritual protection, her qualifications, the fake boyfriends and girlfriends. Her denial in the involvement of a cult doesn’t make sense.

The judge also stated that Electus Per Deus had been “a religious scam like the ones we are seeing across the country”, and “as being akin to a business, which had a modus operandi and was professionally managed”.

You can see a rundown of the horrendous crimes they committed here.

If you’re so inclined, here’s the full judgment as it was handed down by judge Francis, with the verdicts delivered at the one hour, 53-minute mark:

Via News24, here’s the full list of charges:

On 12 of the 32 counts, all three were found guilty; on 10 of the counts, Valentine and Cecilia were found guilty; and on nine, Cecilia and Marcel were found guilty, while Valentine – being the sole accused – was found not guilty on a single count.

Francis said it was clear that Marcel’s mother, Marinda Steyn [below], had attempted to clear Cecilia with her testimony, but that this had “failed dismally” as Marcel decided to come clean in court, implicating Cecilia.

…Le Roux Steyn, was also a part of the group, but had entered into a plea bargain with the State in May last year. He was found guilty of committing seven murders and sentenced to 35 years for each of them. Ten years of his sentence were suspended on condition that he testified at the trial.

It’s frightening to think that Le Roux will one day emerge from jail, but at least we can’t say the same about the rest of Electus Per Deus.

Good riddance.

[sources:timeslive&news24]