Three people have been convicted of the kidnapping, robbery and murders of renowned botanists Rodney and Rachel Saunders, who disappeared while filming a documentary in KwaZulu-Natal in 2018.
The UK-born couple, based in Cape Town, vanished while collecting material for a documentary on plants and seeds for the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) in the Ngoye Forest near Eshowe.
Their disappearance sparked a major investigation, and their remains were later discovered near the crocodile-infested banks of the Tugela River.
Delivering judgment, Judge Esther Steyn found that the State had proved beyond reasonable doubt that Italian-born Safydeen Del Vecchio, his common-law wife Fatima Patel, and Ahmad Mussa were responsible for kidnapping, torturing and murdering the elderly couple.
Steyn said the State's witnesses were credible and reliable. Although there was no direct evidence linking the accused to the killings, she found that the circumstantial evidence formed a compelling and coherent picture of their guilt.
The court heard that Rodney and Rachel Saunders were deliberately targeted because of their age and vulnerability.
Judge Steyn found that forensic evidence indicated the couple, particularly Rachel Saunders, had been subjected to severe torture as the accused sought access to their bank accounts and credit cards.
Evidence presented during the trial showed that more than R700,000 was withdrawn and spent from the couple's accounts after their disappearance. The funds were allegedly used for various purchases, including Bitcoin transactions, and channelled through a single account linked to the accused.
Steyn noted that the operation displayed a high degree of planning and sophistication. She said it was not the court's role to determine whether the motive was ideological or driven by financial gain, but that the evidence clearly demonstrated a coordinated criminal enterprise.
The court also considered text messages previously presented as evidence, in which Del Vecchio allegedly discussed taking money from people he described as non-believers and using it to support fighters, or mujahideen, involved in conflicts in Islamic countries against non-Muslim forces.
All three accused were convicted on charges of kidnapping, robbery with aggravating circumstances, theft and murder.
In addition, Del Vecchio was found guilty of malicious damage to property in connection with a 2017 arson attack that destroyed sugarcane fields valued at approximately R2.3 million belonging to Tongaat Hulett.
Sentencing proceedings are expected to follow.