Water polo coach in gag order drama

Last-minute bid to block podcast on relationship with St Andrew’s pupil who committed suicide dropped

Attempts by a teacher from Gqeberha to temporarily gag a podcaster from delving further into claims of an inappropriate relationship with a pupil at St Andrew’s College in Makhanda, fell by the wayside yesterday.

David Mackenzie, a pro water polo coach and former boarding house tutor at the prestigious all-boys school, had brought an 11th hour application to the high court in Gqeberha yesterday in the hope of delaying the third instalment of the series titled “My Only Story”, due to be released early this morning.

The series, a non-profit News24 project which looks at alleged paedophilia in some of SA’s top schools, had zoomed in on Mackenzie and claims of an inappropriate relationship with 16-year-old pupil Thomas Kruger, who later committed suicide on the St Andrew’s premises.

In an affidavit seen by The Herald, Mackenzie said he had, through his attorney Danie Gouws, sought an undertaking that podcaster Deon Wiggett withhold his name.

Before the release of the podcast, which has since gone viral for a variety of reasons, Wiggett had sent Mackenzie 62 questions, which he declined to answer on advice from his lawyer.

Instead, he hit back with threats of a civil suit.

“Within the hour [a journalist] responded by stating that they will be naming me in the podcast,” Mackenzie said in his affidavit.

And indeed, at the end of the 45-minute-long podcast released on September 23, Mackenzie was named as the teacher who had allegedly shared an inappropriate relationship with the boy who sadly went on to kill himself.

On November 18 2018, the teenager was found hanging from a first-floor window of the sanatorium building at the school.

He had seemingly squeezed through a small window and hanged himself.

There were claims that Mackenzie, who went on to teach at two more prestigious SA schools after his hasty exit from St Andrew’s, had acted inappropriately with pupils during his time at St Andrew’s, though he was never prosecuted.

Another teacher had become concerned about Mackenzie’s relationship with pupils and had brought it to the attention of the headmaster.

Mackenzie eventually opted to resign from his post at the Makhanda school.

Mackenzie said yesterday that the questions sent to him were “not designed to give me a fair opportunity to state my side of the story but are in fact in the nature of interrogatories”.

Gouws said they would now consider a damages claim against the respective media houses.

“My client’s affidavit which you are in possession of was drafted in anticipation of urgent interdictory relief.

“It was provided to the respondents’ attorneys, but was not filed in court,” Gouws said.

“Our client elected on the advice of senior counsel not to pursue the application.

“Our client reserves his right to pursue any action or application should same be necessary to protect his rights.”

In his detailed affidavit, Mackenzie said he was now employed at Reddem House in Bedfordview, Johannesburg.

He considered his permanent residence to be Walmer in Gqeberha.

Mackenzie started working at St Andrew’s College in January 2015, and became a boarding house tutor of Espin House.

Mackenzie went on to be appointed director of the

school’s water polo section and as a life orientation teacher.

He said he became part of the pastoral care staff which meant he was assigned to individual pupils, and was required to mentor them where possible.

On September 16, Wiggett launched season two of his podcast.

The first episode gave a brief description which enticed listeners to the series with the words: “In 2018, a boy died in the clinic of an elite South African school.

“According to them, his death remains a mystery. We suspect there is more to it than that.

“Join us as we hunt our way through a dozen famous schools to find out why Thomas Kruger had to die.”

Mackenzie said he was informed, through his lawyer, that the podcast centred on the belief that he had behaved inappropriately with some of the boys he had taught or coached at the school. At intervals throughout the podcast, Wiggett reads out cellphone messages, seemingly between Mackenzie and Thomas.

He also interviewed the child’s father, Charl Kruger, also from Gqeberha.

Kruger, in his own words, said he had been surprised to learn that a master had been taking his son out of the hostel to a fairly secluded spot 17km away.

“That ’ s when I started to think, what the hell is going on here?” Kruger said.

Mackenzie said in his affidavit that he had been defamed and likened to a person with low morals, a paedophile, a person who groomed scholars while in a position of trust, and a person responsible for or who contributed to the death of Thomas.

He said it was clear, looking at the questions that had been posed to him by Wiggett, that the next episode of the podcast would carry a direct accusation of sexual grooming and assault.

Mackenzie said he had not been found guilty of any crime in a court of law.

“The National Prosecuting Authority investigated me after the death of Thomas for sexual grooming and possession of child pornography.

“In the course of that investigation, they obtained a search warrant and seized my cellphone, laptop and other electronic devices in my possession.

“After inspection of these devices and about 12 months later in March 2019, these were returned to me.”

Mackenzie said Gouws had later received a letter from senior state advocate Nickie Turner, confirming that he could close his file as he was not being prosecuted.

He further stated in his affidavit that he was concerned about his credibility as a water polo coach and teacher, and that he had been irremediably compromised.

He had a disciplinary hearing set for Monday.