State seeks to overturn Jeremy Sias' acquittal in Meghan Cremer murder case

The State is seeking to overturn the acquittal of Jeremy Sias for the murder of showjumper Meghan Cremer.

Prosecutors are honing in on the testimony of defence witness Linda Mohr, who state advocate Susan Galloway described as having provided overly “hostile” evidence. 

Cremer, who had been reported missing on August 3, 2019, was discovered dead five days later in Philippi, having been strangled with a rope.

During the murder trial, the State argued that Sias broke into Cremer’s cottage, killed her and stuffed her body in the boot of her car before getting rid of the body.

In his defence, Sias said that he had found her car abandoned and took it for a joyride before finding her body in the boot, after which he dumped her body.

However, it emerged that there were no signs of a struggle or tampering at the crime scene, leading to Sias’ acquittal on murder charges, but conviction on two counts of theft and defeating the administration of justice.

Mohr previously testified that she identified Cremer as the driver of a vehicle captured on CCTV leaving the property at 6.26pm on the day she disappeared.

Galloway raised concerns over the reliability of Mohr’s identification, as the lawyer punched holes in her statements regarding the appearance of a ponytail – a crucial detail in the identification process.

Galloway said: “When she was asked by the prosecutor about the ponytail, she amended her version on the stand. It appears her initial reasoning for identifying [Cremer] as the driver falls away.”

Galloway said Mohr had a strong emotional connection to the case, but suggested a reluctance to fully cooperate with the police.

In response, Sias’ defence advocate, Bash Sibda, contended that Mohr’s testimony actually undermined the State’s case.

He said: “The case was going the State’s way until Mohr testified because it destroyed their case theory.”

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Sibda elaborated on Mohr’s previous attempts to present her findings to the South African Police Service (SAPS), alleging dismissive behaviour from the police as they had already settled on their suspect.

He added: “Had it been Sias, they would’ve confronted the evidence of the footage to the accused (sic).”

As the court deliberates on the State’s appeal, Sias remains on parole, with the judgment reserved, keeping the local community and Cremer’s family members in anxious anticipation of the outcome.

Cape Argus