Eugene de Kock: Assassin for the State - Paperback

by Anemari Jansen (Author)

Anemari Jansen met Eugene de Kock in Pretoria Central Prison in 2011 and was immediately intrigued - how could the prisoner "with the soft voice" be reconciled with the man dubbed "Prime Evil"? She tracked down De Kock's family, friends, and former Koevoet and Vlakplaas colleagues in her search for answers. This book also quotes from De Kock's diaries and an unpublished manuscript. De Kock is scathingly honest: about the atrocities he committed, about the superiors from whom he received his orders - and about his shame.

Author Biography

In 2011 Anemari Jansen unexpectedly got an opportunity to meet Eugene de Kock in jail. She was immediately fascinated by the man "with the soft voice", the former commander of Vlakplaas who was dubbed Prime Evil by the media. She won De Kock's trust and for the next three years went on a journey to find out more about the man behind the persona and the era in which he committed his crimes: she visited Vlakplaas, did countless interviews with his former Koevoet and Vlakplaas colleagues and Sunday after Sunday visited De Kock in the old Pretoria Central prison. Jansen simply had to know: How did it happen that De Kock could commit such heinous crimes? Her search for answers took her across the country and changed her life irrevocably. Jansen's debut novel, called Glipstroom, was published by Tafelberg in 2014. She has an MA in Afrikaans from the former RAU and a BA (HOD) from the University of Pretoria. Since 2012 she has been writing articles for the online police magazine eNongqai.