Teens alleged killers appear in court, accused one believed to be her boyfriend

Tashneecka’s family say they are still reeling since her death. Picture: Leon Knipe

Tashneecka’s family say they are still reeling since her death. Picture: Leon Knipe

Published Dec 29, 2023

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Cape Town - The two men accused of murdering a Steenberg teen briefly appeared in the Wynberg Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday.

Tashneecka Prins, 17, was last seen on Saturday, October 29 when she left her grandmother’s house to meet friends.

A few hours later, her family were called to a scene near the corners of Symphony and Sand Olive Road where the body of an unidentified female was discovered.

According to family members, the body was lying face down in the sand, covered with two dirty mats.

On closer inspection, one of the girl’s relatives first identified the clothes the deceased had on before her body was turned around.

The deceased’s grandmother, Anne Gordon, begged people to come forward with information about what might have happened.

A week later, two men aged 21 and 28 were arrested for the teen’s murder.

While they cannot be identified yet as an ID Parade is still to be conducted, it is believed that one of the men was Tashneecka’s boyfriend.

The body of Tashneecka Prins was found on a field in Steenberg in October this year. Picture: Supplied

A family member, who spoke on the basis of anonymity out of fear of being victimised, said they learnt that the boyfriend, 28, and Tashneecka were dating for about two months.

“She apparently went to him on Saturday and was last seen walking into his house. We also heard that he killed her and left her body under his bed. And the same night he went to his friend (the co-accused) to ask him for help to dump the body,” the relative said.

The State told the court it would present three witnesses and had also obtained video footage.

The second accused (21-year-old), who applied for bail, also learnt his fate when bail was denied after the two addresses he gave fell through because family members did not want to accommodate him.

Tashneecka’s family said that they felt a sense of relief when they heard this.

The case will be heard on March 1.