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Cape Town - It has been a long road for Carl Schoombie's family since his death after a brutal assault in November 2015, but they never doubted his killers would be convicted.
"I was never in doubt about how strong our case was," his relieved brother Lee said on Friday, after Brent Henry and Juane Jacobs were convicted for his murder.
"We are really grateful that the prosecution put a lot into it. I had no doubt that we were going to come out on top in the end."
They were able to keep going because of the amazing support they had received.
"The manner in which they killed my brother was horrendous, as the judge said."
He hoped they would receive life in jail.
Direct intent
Western Cape High Court Judge Robert Henney found the evidence against Henry and Jacobs was overwhelming.
They followed the Uber taxi that the Stellenbosch University graduate and his three friends were travelling home in after a night out.
They had blocked the taxi in a cul-de-sac to target Schoombie in a "brutal and merciless" assault. They had accused him of starting trouble at the Tiger nightclub in Claremont.
Henney said they acted in common purpose without premeditation and had direct intent to kill him, because they aimed their blows at his head.
"It seems the main aim of the accused was to kick and beat the deceased incessantly on the head and nowhere else on the body."
A pathologist who examined his body said he had a brain injury usually only seen in people killed in car accidents.
Schoombie was admitted to hospital in a coma and died a few days later.
Henney said they had not provided answers for how Schoombie could have been left "beaten to a pulp on the side of the road" in their presence.
The evidence of his friends - Victoria Packer and brother and sister John and Sarah Cannon - was deemed to be credible and truthful.
Henney acknowledged it was a traumatic experience for them.
"What is like a golden thread throughout is that all of them had seen both of the accused assaulting the deceased."
The Uber driver, Jean-Piere Muroncwa, was the only one whose testimony included how Schoombie was assaulted. In this regard, he was a single witness and his evidence was treated cautiously.
Thus Henney was reluctant to make a conviction for assault after Muroncwa testified that Jacobs punched him on the side of the head.
For the attack and threat directed at John Cannon, Jacobs was convicted of common assault and assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.
Henry was found guilty of assault by means of threat.
His R1 000 bail was revoked. Both men will remain in custody in Pollsmoor prison until sentencing proceedings on April 18.
