In a chilling account presented at the Gqeberha High Court, Dylan Cullis, one of the men implicated in the murder of Vicki Terblanche, recounted the harrowing events leading up to the death of the 42-year-old mother. Taking the stand on Tuesday, Cullis described the reckless and chaotic circumstances that unfolded on the day Terblanche was killed, highlighting the role of drugs in the tragedy.
Terblanche’s body was discovered in a shallow grave in Greenbushes in 2021, shortly after she had been reported missing by her boyfriend, Reinhardt Leach. In the aftermath of the gruesome discovery, Leach was arrested, along with Terblanche’s estranged husband, Arnold Terblanche. Cullis, who is currently serving a prison sentence for his involvement in the murder, provided key details about the sequence of events.
According to Cullis, he met Leach and Mario de Ridder Jnr, a state’s witness, shortly before the murder. The group, along with Terblanche, consumed large quantities of drugs, including Methcathinone (CAT), during a night of indulgence. It was during this period that Leach reportedly confided in them that he intended to kill Terblanche, who was set to receive a significant divorce settlement of R5 million. Cullis noted that, under the influence of drugs, he did not initially take Leach’s threat seriously.
The situation escalated when Leach acquired a .22 calibre gun. Cullis recounted how Leach asked him to buy Percocet, which was then mixed with Berocca and given to Terblanche to drink. About 30 minutes later, Leach seemed confident that his plan was unfolding as intended. However, it wasn’t long before Cullis heard Terblanche gagging while Leach had fallen asleep. When Cullis attempted to wake her, she briefly regained consciousness, and he moved her to another room, propping her up with a blanket to avoid her lying on her back.
Cullis described a disturbing scene in which he fell asleep beside Terblanche, only to be awoken by Leach’s accusations that he had been intimate with her. The tension escalated further when Leach ordered Cullis to kill Terblanche, a task Cullis claims he could not bring himself to do. Instead, Leach took matters into his own hands. He smothered Terblanche with a pillow while she lay tucked under the blanket.
After her death, Leach and de Ridder reportedly packed Terblanche’s belongings into a car boot, seemingly in preparation to sell her items. Her body was left in the house for two days before Leach instructed Cullis and de Ridder to change her clothing. The men then transported her body to a grave they had arranged to be dug, setting up an alibi by going go-karting before finally disposing of the body.
Cullis further claimed that he had never met Terblanche’s estranged husband, Arnold, and had only seen him in court following his arrest. The disturbing testimony continued into Wednesday as the court continues to unravel the details of this tragic crime.
