Mark Lifman shooting: Suspected murderers identified in George court

Update Video

GEORGE NEWS AND VIDEO - The suspects in the Mark Lifman murder case have been identified as Johannes Jacobs (53) and Gert Bezuidenhout (37).

The two men appeared briefly in the George Magistrate's Court this morning and asked that the court issue an order that they be held in solitary confinement while detained. The magistrate denied their request.

The case was postponed to 13 November for the state to gather bail information.

Various media houses are gathered at the court where a high police presence is being maintained and everyone entering the building is subjected to a thorough search.

The provincial police top brass and Provincial Police Commissioner Thembikile Patekile also attended the proceedings and is currently briefing the media.

VIDEO: Lifman case: Provincial Commissioner Thembikile Patekile speaks outside George Magistrate's Court

Lifman was shot in the parking area at the Garden Route Mall on Sunday morning. On Sunday afternoon, the two suspects were arrested near Uniondale in the Western Cape.

Lifman was due to appear in the Western Cape High court on Monday for the Brian Wainstein murder trial. Wainstein, who was shot at his home in Constantia, Cape Town in August 2017, was known as the "Steroid King". Lifman was the main accused alongside alleged Sexy Boys gang leader Jerome “Donkie” Booysen.

The trial, which began in April 2024 in the Western Cape High Court, was postponed yesterday following Lifman's killing.

Prosecutors claim Lifman paid to have Wainstein killed and that he and others took over Wainstein’s illegal steroid business.

The accused in the Wainstein case, including Lifman, Booysen, and 12 others, face 36 charges, including murder, attempted murder, gang activities, and firearm offenses. The trial will resume on 11 November.

The scene on Sunday afternoon. Photo: Kristy Kolberg