[imagesource:twitter/rianténaidoo]

The Thabo Bester case has spooked everyone, noting how four years later there is still major conjecture and uncertainty surrounding the circumstances of Gavin Watson’s death.

The former Bosasa (now African Global Operations) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) was declared dead at 05:27 AM on August 26, 2019, but the circumstances of his untimely (or timely, depending on who you ask) death are still shrouded in mystery.

The South African recently picked up on some chatter on Twitter, with people recalling the Hollywood-esque story amidst the ongoing saga of prison escapee and convicted rapist and murderer Thabo Bester.

People are wondering if Gavin is in fact alive after possibly faking his death with a suspiciously “clean” accident.

Watson is said to have died on the R21 approaching OR Tambo International Airport, with only R70 in his wallet, his ID and his driver’s licence. His phone was not recovered on the scene (or ever) only to be later traced to unknown locals in Germiston and Bryanston.

Besides his phone not being on him at the time, despite apparently being on WhatsApp an hour before he died, questions about who arrived on the scene and when have been puzzling everyone ever since:

Reports have it that paramedics from a private company, Cape Medics, were the ones who were on the scene and did all the observation after they arrived around 05:16. He was pronounced dead at 05:27 and no information about any attempt to resuscitate or treat Watson was mentioned in any report. Sources from private paramedics and Johannesburg EMS revealed that they were told to turn back since Cape Medics were already on site.

Furthermore, police revealed that the Ekhuruleni Fire Department was on the scene to assist with cutting the vehicle to free Watson’s trapped body. In light of this, how did the Cape Medics manage to thoroughly inspect a trapped body without proper access to it?

Mzansi has pointed out some gaps, too:

@samkelemaseko I still don’t believe your story. The man left his fancy car, the BMW X5 at the airport, and drove this car scrap? The man is still alive. That’s what I believe in. @samkelemaseko must provide more information on the so-called Watson death.

— MGILIJA CE EFF @KZN271 (@MGILIJACCC) April 9, 2023

accident happened at 5:05 but they only cleared the road at 11:30.

not skid marks

aforementioned sand looks to be damp, suggesting it has be on the road for a while and had caught some rain.

— Mpiyonke (@uZulu_Ngempela) April 10, 2023

Thabo’s plan was better executed than Gavin’s , the problem is Thabo could not resist his cravings for Woolies’s black forest.

— Cph0 60 (@SiphoInDemand) April 9, 2023

The theory that Watson potentially pulled a Thabo Bester is further validated by the fact that Watson was being investigated for the bribery of senior former government ministers and ex-officials from the correctional services department. He died a day before he was to testify before a tax evasion and money laundering state capture inquiry, noted TimesLIVE at the time, with one of the inquiries including his alleged smuggling of an estimated R500 million from the country.

An eyewitness also told News24 that they saw his car parked on the side of the highway with its hazards on, alleging that Watson then made his way back onto the road, sped up and then crashed:

With no evidence to suggest that Watson applied the brakes or tried to avoid the concrete pillar, a preliminary report by a private investigator hired to look into the crash found that there was no acceleration five seconds before impact, suggesting Watson was dead before the crash.

A News24 walkthrough of the scene confirmed that there were no marks on the road, where debris could still be seen.

Yes, a suspiciously clean accident site.

It is also strange how neither the South African National Roads Agency (Sanral) nor the Airports Company of South Africa (ACSA) has given any clarity on why there were no cameras on the stretch of road where he died. If there was CCTV footage, we would be able to see if he was run off the road, as some suspect.

There was also supposed to be some clarity about the cause of the accident from a toxicology report, but that has not been mentioned since.

However, investigative journalist and author Mandy Wiener confirmed that there were photos of Watson from the accident scene:

There are photos of #GavinWatson on the scene of yesterday’s car crash. His face and his injuries are clearly visible. There’s a large gash on his neck. I am not going to post them. For those who speculate that he did a body swap or he’s in the Cayman Islands, I think not.

— Mandy Wiener (@MandyWiener) August 27, 2019

It seems that was not enough to put to bed the theory that Gavin Watson might actually be sipping cocktails in the Cayman Islands.

[sources:southafrican&timeslive&news24&702]