The pre-trial conference of the two men accused of plotting to kill Gqeberha mother Vicki Terblanche was postponed in the High Court earlier on Friday.
The defence now has all the information they requested to start in earnest to prove the innocence of their client, murder-accused Arnold Terblanche.
Terblanche is currently out on bail of R1-million while his co-accused Reinhardt Leach remains in custody.
State Prosecutor Marius Stander has complied with a previous court order compelling him to furnish the defence with an indexed version of the evidence and a list of state witnesses who wanted to apply for legal aid as some might be asked questions during the trial that could implicate them.
Terblanche's defence lawyer Peter Daubermann said since they now have access to the documents they need, they would have to consult with their client, Arnold, for him to consider his position and the way forward.
When the pre-trial conference kicked off in April, a big point of contention was the state witnesses seeking legal aid out of fear of incriminating themselves.
The defence, therefore, wanted a list of these potential 204 witnesses and on what grounds they could implicate themselves.
The state provided a list of 10 people who could potentially face serious charges including murder, accessory to murder, conspiracy to commit murder and defeating the ends of justice.
Seven of the 10 could all face a charge of defeating the course of justice, including Terblanche's daughter Natalie, his former fiancé Krystall Wiggill and her twin sister Charissa Roets.
Sharon Yelani, Arnold's domestic helper, could also face a similar charge as she was on the crime scene days before police arrived, taking photographs and videos, allegedly on the instruction of Terblanche.
The state's key witness who was given Section 204 status since day one, Mario de Ridder Jr., could be charged with murder, defeating the course of justice, robbery with aggravating circumstances and contravention of Section 4 of the Drugs and drug trafficking Act 140 of 1992.
Only after the trial, and if the judge rules that de Ridder was truthful in his testimony, would he be given immunity from prosecution.
Digital Data
The state has since obtained the digital data related to the case, fetched from Cape Town on an external hard drive of 1 GB.
The defence for both Terblanche and Leach will now have to sift through thousands of documents to see what further evidence, if any, was uncovered by police.
Vicki Terblanche was drugged and suffocated to death in her Mill Park home in October 2021, just days before her 43rd birthday.
A third accused, Dylan Cullis took a plea deal with the state and was sentenced to 18 years in prison for his role in the crime.
The matter was postponed to 24 May.
To stay up to date with the case you can listen to the Algoa FM News Exclusive Podcast: Journey to Justice
