'My client is no more': murder trial delayed after assassination of 'underworld boss' in the Cape

Self-proclaimed businessman and alleged underworld boss Mark Lifman died in a hail of bullets on Sunday in the parking lot of the Garden Route Mall in George in the Western Cape

A murder trial involving the shooting of a steroid “kingpin” in bed at home in Constantia was postponed in Cape Town on Monday due to the assassination in broad daylight of high-profile accused Mark Lifman.

Self-proclaimed businessman and alleged underworld boss Lifman died in a hail of bullets on Sunday in the parking lot of the Garden Route Mall in George, Western Cape.

Police confirmed the arrest of two men, aged 37 and 53, on Sunday afternoon near the town of Uniondale, about 110km from the crime scene.

Lifman, 57, was arrested for the murder of Brian Wainstein — gunned down in 2017 as he slept next to his wife and child — alongside Jerome “Donkie” Booysen, Andre Naude, Sam Farquharson, Egan Morgan, former police detective Wayne Henderson, Ricardo Maarman, Typhenne Jantjies, Bevan Ezaus, Bradley de Bula, Kashief Hanslo, Rowendal Stevens, Ismail Cupido and a Russian, Igor Russol. 

The trial was set to resume on Monday before judge Vincent Saldanha in the Cape Town high court, but prosecutor Mervyn Menigo said: “Unfortunately, accused number one was murdered in George. His life was tragically cut short, and the SA Police Service is investigating the matter.” 

Saldanha offered condolences to Lifman's family and thanked his defence lawyer Estelle Kilian for her dedication. “The court extends its deepest condolences to the family of your client. It's truly tragic for someone to lose their life under such circumstances,” said Saldanha. 

Kilian confirmed Lifman’s death and added: “I’ll be standing down from the matter as my client is no more.”

Booysen and Naude’s lawyer Amanda Nel requested a weeklong postponement. Nel said: “Given the close relationship between the accused [it is] necessary for grieving purposes.”

The remaining suspects looked agitated and distraught in the dock on Monday. Another co-accused, Egan Norman, did not attend after being arrested for another matter and was set to appear in the Cape Town magistrate's court.

Booysen said he was devastated by Lifman’s death. He said he had “lost a friend” whom he had known for 25 years. Naude said he too had been targeted. “There was an attempted hit on me last week.” 

Saldanha postponed the case to November 11. The accused face 36 charges, including alleged contravention of the Prevention of Organised Crime Act and the murder of Wainstein.

During the trial, Lifman denied any involvement in Wainstein’s murder, saying he neither acted as the perpetrator nor as an agent for anyone else. 

“I deny that I form a common purpose with [Jerome Booysen] to commit the murder of Weinstein ... I deny that on or about November 2017 ... that I incited, instigated, commanded or procured another person to murder Nafiz Modack, Colin Booysen, Jacques Cronje, Carl Lakay, Ashley Fields, Emile Goodley, James Dalton,” he added.

Randolf Jorberg, who closed his Beerhouse bar and eatery on Long Street in the CBD and fled the country due to threats of extortion, was unsurprised by news of the latest hit. He said he had been warned that Lifman may be killed one day but had hoped he would ultimately be brought to justice.

“I am disappointed that this won’t happen, and I do hope that the state is still capable of investigating and prosecuting everybody who supported and worked with Mark Lifman over the years — that every murder ... will be investigated ... every shooter and everyone that had funded it in every way,” Jorberg shared on his blog.

Jorberg was being sued for defamation by Lifman over comments made during various interviews and on social media, alleging he was behind the killing of his former Beerhouse bouncer, Joe-Louis Kanyona, in June 2015. 

“I felt a mix of emotions when I heard the news, but there is a sense of relief as I had a deadline that I was working towards that I had to answer to his court case where I was asked to prove that my statement of accusing him to be a murderer of Joe Kanyona, our doorman,” said Jorberg.

“While I have inside information of certain things that are not out in the open it would have been very challenging to absolutely and with certainty prove and make up for the shortcomings of police investigations of the last nine years.” 

Lifman intended to claim R1m in damages from Jorberg including interest and costs for “damaging his reputation”. 

Police spokesperson Col Andrè Traut said: “The vehicle they were travelling in was also confiscated ... After the suspects fled the crime scene, police, law enforcement officials, security companies and crime watch groups were activated to be on the lookout for the suspects in the region. As a consequence, the pair was arrested a couple of hours later.”

They are due to appear in the George magistrate's court on Tuesday.

National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson Eric Ntabazalila said the murder trial would continue. “The state will hand up the death certificate and will continue with the prosecution of the remaining accused. The state will not stop the prosecution or withdraw charges against any of the remaining accused following the incident.”