'Nothing will bring my son back': Dad speaks after 10-year sentence for son’s death in guesthouse shower
Jèan Vosloo and Mari Hoon in happier times, before the tragedy that claimed their lives
Image: SUPPLIED
The father of the man who was found naked and dead in a guesthouse shower, right next to the woman he was about to marry, says the prison sentence handed down on Friday will never come close to what he has lost.
An emotional Dr Lawton Vosloo said while the prison doors will swing open for guesthouse manager Kevin Pretorius in 10 years, nothing will change for him.
He said he will still wake up each day knowing full well he will never see his son again, and that all he has left of “my precious boy”, whom he so lovingly raised for 25 years, are ashes in a wooden box.
“In a few years, Kevin will be out of jail and I will still not have my son,” Vosloo told IOL, mere hours after Humansdorp magistrate Vusiwe Mnyani meted out Pretorius’s punishment for the 2020 deaths of Jèan Vosloo and his 28-year-old fiancée, Mari Hoon.
“For that reason, I would have welcomed a harsher sentence, but justice, however, has been served.”
Jèan and Mari had been staying at Kliphuis Guesthouse on Zuuranys Farm near Kareedouw for a long weekend when the tragedy happened.
Kareedouw is a small town in the Eastern Cape, situated along the N2 between Gqeberha and Plettenberg Bay.
The court heard that while they were showering, carbon monoxide gas — which has no smell and no colour — built up inside the bathroom because the gas geyser was not properly vented.
There was no flue pipe to carry the poisonous fumes outside, allowing the deadly gas to fill the small room.
They were found naked and unresponsive by a friend in the early hours of April 26.
The bathroom attached to the room where the couple had been staying
Image: SOURCED
Almost six years later, Pretorius was found guilty in the Humansdorp Magistrate's Court of two counts of murder for the double deaths.
Though he was sentenced to 10 years for each death, the terms will run concurrently, meaning he will serve 10 years in total.
The court heard that other guests staying at Kliphuis had complained about gas smells and feeling unwell in the months before the deaths, but no proper repairs were made.
Pretorius had been repeatedly alerted to the risk yet did not fix the faulty installation.
During his trial, Pretorius maintained the deaths were a tragic accident and not the result of any intention to harm the couple.
Vosloo said he was glad Pretorius was now facing the consequences for what he had been found guilty of.
"Kevin Pretorius caused the death of my precious son and his precious fiancé," the heartbroken dad said.
“Jèan was my life, he was beautiful, sculpted by the angels.
"He had wonderful plans and a future full of expectations ... he was such a good young man.
"He was organised, had all his ducks in a row and was enthusiastic and loved life — in every photo of him, you will see him smiling."
He said he was now holding on to memories of the good moments they shared, including fishing trips, diving and riding motorbikes.
“It is all gone, they are now only memories," Vosloo said.
"I will never see him again."
Vosloo added: "Because they died due to unnatural causes, the state opened a case for further investigation, and as a result, justice has been served, and I would like to thank the state for a job well done."
Last year, Vosloo’s older son, Ivan, died in a motorbike crash in Gqeberha.
Police, at the time, said Ivan, 34, lost control of his motorcycle and died at the scene.
"Ivan would have been very happy with the outcome of today's sentence," Vosloo said.
"I love both my sons with all my heart."
IOL