True crime podcaster tells the Sizzlers massacre story
|Published
Cape Town - A young boy dubbed the “Samurai Killer” who was granted parole and a mass murderer asking to be freed have motivated two books by a true crime series podcaster and writer.
The latest book, Sizzlers, the hate crime that tore apart Sea Point, hit the shelves this week.
Nicole Engelbrecht has become a popular name on social media after the booming success of her True Crime South Africa series.
For her, podcasting is a way to tell the stories of the invisible victims and delve into the truth that many do not see or hear about in the public domain.
Five years ago, Engelbrecht rose to stardom on the airwaves and social media when she took on the role of becoming a podcaster and left her high-power career behind.
“I spent 20 years in corporate management before branching out on my own in 2019 to try my hand at creative entrepreneurship,” she said.
“I chose true crime as a genre for the podcast because there were no other South African true crime podcasts at the time.
“I saw the amazing work that UK and US podcasters were doing in helping to raise awareness around cold and unsolved cases, and I thought South Africa could definitely use something similar.
“The podcast was going to be just a small part of what I had planned, but it exploded in popularity very quickly and now true crime has taken over my life entirely in podcasts, books and documentaries.
“I’ve always been very clear on my podcast about the fact that I do not have any formal background in criminology or similar, and I have learned along with my listeners.”
Engelbrecht published her first book, Samurai Sword Murder, in 2022, the story of schoolboy Morné Harmse who took a samurai sword to school and killed a fellow pupil and injured three others in Krugersdorp.
She then began working on her next project, the Sizzlers massacre which shook Sea Point after Adam Woest murdered nine victims at the gay massage parlour, leaving one survivor, in 2003.
Since 2021, Woest has embarked on his own bid for parole.
“I wanted my next book to focus on a case that would clearly display the issues in the parole system, and Sizzlers was a glaringly horrendous example of that,” she said.
“In 2021, Leigh Visser, the sister of Warren Visser, who was a victim of the Sizzler’s massacre, contacted me and asked whether she could share her petition on my Facebook group of 20 000 members.
“The petition was against the proposed release of her brother’s murderer, Adam Woest, on parole. Sizzlers is a case that is important to talk about for many different reasons.”
But not only does her book focus on parole, Engelbrecht said she wanted to touch on the issue of hate crime.
“The victims were extremely vulnerable as many were queer, and also because they were sex workers.
“The savagery of the attack was labelled ‘unparalleled’ by the judge who convicted the two perpetrators.”
When asked how her life had changed she said: “I no longer see things as black-and-white, and understand how every situation is made up of shades of grey,” she said.
“Whenever I am faced with an opportunity or a decision to make, I go back to that. I ask: ‘does this serve the victim in some way?’ If the answer is no, then I know what to do.”
Dr Hestelle van Staden, a forensic pathologist, author and star of the television series, “Outopsie” said the book showed immense sensitivity and the reality of such crimes.
“Always one to campaign for victims, Nicole did herself proud by accurately reflecting the facts of this horrendous crime, yet steering away from sensationalism,” she said.
“A tribute to all the victims (alive and dead, primary and other), law enforcement and emergency services, she does not neglect to pay credit where it is due.”
The book is in stores from May 10and if you want to find out more visit: https://www.nb.co.za/en/view-book/?id=9781990973826