Correction: The article below, received from the South African Press Association, initially said that Visser had approached Pieters shortly before her trial started in 2005, with a pre-prepared statement, containing suggestions about her good character. This was not correct. Evidence led in court was in fact that the prepared statement contained suggestions about the good character of Prinsloo. The mistake has been rectified
Cezanne Visser, also known as Advocate Barbie, never asked for help getting out of her relationship with Dirk Prinsloo, the Pretoria High Court heard on Thursday.
Lorie Pieters, a graphic artist who worked for Visser and Prinsloo for five weeks in 2001, testified that Visser had told her she would never give up on her relationship with Prinsloo because ”he did it for her”.
He was the one she loved, the sex was great and she was happy. He gave her what no other man could or would, Visser told Pieters.
”Most of the conversations I had with them strangely always seemed to turn to their sex life.
”I told her many times she should get away from the relationship and him. Every time she went back to the fact that their sex life was unbelievably good,” Pieters told the court.
”That was the driving force in their relationship for her.”
Pieters, who remained in contact with the couple after resigning, revealed that Visser had at first told her their arrest was ”nothing serious”.
She claimed some children had stolen jewellery from them and then made false claims.
Later on, realising the charges were more serious, Visser admitted the police had searched their house and found drugs.
”She also said they’d had some children there from an orphanage and that in order to make the children feel at ease, they’d told the children they could or should walk around the house naked and not be ashamed of their bodies,” Pieters said.
”I told her she was a bloody fool and that she should turn state’s [witness] and hand him over if she was in fact not guilty. I told her he was a narcissistic pig and not worth going down for.
”She said she couldn’t do that and that she was loyal to him and what he gave her no other man ever could or would,” Pieters testified.
Implants
Pieters said she drove Visser to hospital for her second or third breast enlargement. A year later, Visser complained to her of backache.
”I asked her why she would want them bigger than they were, because they were already very, very big. She said the breast implants [weren’t] going to be that much, just enough to fill a wineglass,” Pieters said.
”She was worried about the operation, but said if it was what Prinsloo wanted, then she was quite happy to go along with it, because it would make him happier and improve their sex life.”
Pieters said she asked why Visser did not have the implants removed and get out of the relationship, but Visser declared she was happy and the sex with Prinsloo was great.
She had witnessed several fights between Visser and Prinsloo and had seen Visser screaming back at Prinsloo, bursting into tears and driving away after one particularly fierce argument.
Although she had dressed smartly when she went to court, Visser had also shown her photos of a very short, see-through black dress she had worn for a night out with Prinsloo.
Visser had remarked about how much attention she received from other men and seemed to enjoy the attention.
Visser has pleaded not guilty on 14 charges, including fraud and soliciting minors to commit indecent acts, indecent assault, rape and manufacturing child pornography.
She claims she was under Prinsloo’s control to such an extent that she ”had no will of her own” when the alleged crimes were committed and cannot not be held responsible for her actions.
Pieters testified that she resigned from her job as Prinsloo’s personal assistant after he gave her black see-through lingerie for her birthday, proudly telling her that Visser bought it at a Hustler shop.
The trial continues. — Sapa