Gideon Roberts

Gideon Roberts (1919 - 2007)

Brief overview:

Gideon (88), a retired dentist, was tortured and stabbed to death in 2007, Durban area, KZN by the notorious "Spearman" Petros Mthethwa

After being tied up, Roberts was repeatedly burned with lit cigarettes on his arms. At some stage during his torture, Roberts broke free from his tormentor and pressed a burglar alarm panic button. Mthethwa stabbed Roberts in the back as he pressed the alarm and then, as the retired dentist turned to face his attacker, delivered the killing blow to his chest.

Brief Biography:

• Other Victims/Family
  • Sheila Hesk
• Funeral/Memorial
• The Street/Suburb
• The Region (Land disputes, other incidents etc.)
  • "December 2007: Captain Khanya Bhengu said Mcebiseni Petros Mthethwa has attacked three different people with an assegai in the last three weeks. Two of his victims were from La Lucia and one was from Cato Manor. The 26-year-old from Mayville is also wanted in connection with two murders, 15 robberies and two rapes. Bhengu said Mthethwa escaped four weeks ago while he was being held in police custody. According to another policeman, Mthethwa also stabbed the two policemen who were guarding him." *https://archive.is/Drk9y

Attack Details:

• Date and time of attack
• Weapons
• Items Stolen
• Investigative officer/SAPS Case No:
• Torture, Gratuitous violence
  • "Of the single murder that Mthethwa admitted to, the state handed in a pathologist’s report detailing the injuries inflicted on Roberts. After being tied up, Roberts was repeatedly burned with lit cigarettes on his arms. At some stage during his torture, Roberts broke free from his tormentor and pressed a burglar alarm panic button. Mthethwa stabbed Roberts in the back as he pressed the alarm and then, as the retired dentist turned to face his attacker, delivered the killing blow to his chest."
• Indications of Hate Crime? Threats etc.

Perpetrator details:

• Number and Descriptions
• Arrests
• Name/s and age/s of Perpetrator/s
• Country of origin of Perpetrator/s
• Trial/Conviction
  • During Petros Mthethwa's trial Detective Inspector Keith Caswell of the house robbery unit gave evidence that Mthethwa had attacked and murdered at least one of his employers. Late in 2008, Petros Mthethwa, named as “South Africa’s most violent house robber” by the KZN house robbery unit at the time, was sentenced to several life sentences for a series of violent house robberies, rapes and murders, most committed with a traditional Zulu spear.
  • March 2012: Petros Mthethwa (29), who was already serving a life sentence for killing an 80-year-old man during a robbery in 2007, was given two life sentences for murder and rape, respectively. He was also jailed for 66 years, with some jail terms to run concurrently, for a string of other crimes, including armed robbery, housebreaking and attempted murder. Mthethwa, dubbed the “Spearman” because he carried a spear during most of his attacks, was charged with raping and assaulting a Durban woman during a house robbery in April 2007.

Additional Biographical Information:

• Possibly: https://graves-at-eggsa.org/main.php?g2_itemId=2930184 (Gidion Roberts (88) - 1920 - 2008)

Links to Media articles:

• https://archive.ph/cAGt4
• https://archive.ph/pzAXt
• https://archive.ph/LWsw7