The family of a Durban couple found dead in their apartment on Wednesday believe they were poisoned due to the wrong use of pesticides when their neighbour was having her flat fumigated for termites a week before.
The bodies of Matri Molver, 34, and Nicholas Molver, 35, were found in a “natural sleeping position” in their bedroom in Observatory Court, an apartment block on Currie Road in Durban.
They were discovered by Nicholas’ brother, Luke, who lives in the same building.
“Nicholas and Matri were unresponsive to phone calls and had not left for work. I have keys for their flat so I entered. I walked into their bedroom and they were lying there. I knew immediately something was terribly wrong,” he said.
Nicholas and Matri were... lying there. I knew immediately something was terribly wrong
— Luke Molver, who discovered the lifeless bodies of his brother and sister-in-law after they had failed to respond to phone calls
He said he could detect a distinct smell of chemicals from the corridor outside.
Nicholas, a communications officer and Matri, a graphic designer, were married in 2018. The flat has been in Nicholas's family for years and the couple had lived there for seven years.
While the post mortem results are expected this week, sources close to the investigation and industry experts with knowledge of the case believe the Molvers were poisoned by phosphine gas fumes released over the course of several days from the apartment next door.
Shawn Herbst of Netcare 911 said paramedics were struck by a strong smell of chemicals, which they could smell from the road.
The smell still hung on the steps at the entrance of the building when the Sunday Times visited on Friday.
Police spokesperson Lt Col Nqobile Gwala said an inquest was being conducted by Berea police.
Pictures and videos supplied to the Sunday Times from inside the neighbouring apartment show small mounds of white powder strewn across the wooden floorboards and bathroom tiles. Industry insiders have described such use of highly toxic phosphine-based tablets as “overkill”.
The owner of the fumigated apartment, who asked not to be named, confirmed she had hired a company, whose name in known to the Sunday Times, to fumigate her vacant apartment the week before.
She said she found the company on a business group on WhatsApp and that it had professional in its communication.
An invoice for R10,592 for the work done, which the Sunday Times has seen, was submitted to the owner on Monday.
The invoice states the work done was for the treatment of termites and emphasises: “Gas toxins to be used throughout the flat, this product is extremely effective and highly dangerous.”
Records show the company was registered in March and has two directors.
One of the directors was listed on the invoice as the person who did the fumigation. Attempts to contact him were unsuccessful. Calls to numbers listed in his name went unanswered. He also did not respond to questions sent to him on WhatsApp.
The company's other director, Mohamed Feizal Gangat, said he was unaware of any work carried out by his partner.
“We registered the company together but we weren’t doing any work because we are not officially registered with the department of agriculture,” he said.
“I am in complete shock that people died. I don’t know what to say. I had no idea.”
Matri’s father, Reverend Hennie van den Heever of the NG Kerk in Dundee, said they were focusing on building a case to prevent this from happening again.
“We want to spare others the unbearable sorrow and grief we are experiencing now. That would have been the reaction our children would prefer. We were robbed of two beautiful, wise and compassionate souls that we as a nation are in dire need of right now and we want to channel their voices.”
The incident has sparked outrage, with pest control industry giants saying they have been calling on the department of agriculture for years to strictly regulate who is allowed to purchase and handle hazardous chemicals.
Vice president of the Pest Control Federation of SA (PCFSA) Moses Chetty said hazardous chemicals can be purchased off the shelf from various hardware stores, resulting in incidents of malpractice.
“There were no warning signs on the door,” he said.
“The amount of tablets that were used in that apartment was a suicide mission in itself. Nothing could have survived the amount of toxic fumes that would have emanated from there.”
Chetty said products with the main active ingredient of aluminium phosphide gas are considered a “red label product” and can only be handled by a registered pest control operator.
“You have to be registered with the department of agriculture. You will get a P registration number after academic and practical training and thereafter signed off by a qualified registered pest control operator (PCO).”
Dr Gerhard Verdoorn, director of the Griffon Poison Information Centre, said fumigation was a highly specialised field.
“You cannot just use your normal PCO licence for fumigation, you have to undergo specialised training.
Verdoorn said he had dealt with at least six cases in the past year in which people had died due to fumigation malpractice.
“We had a case two weeks ago in the Western Cape, where a two-year-old baby died from poisoning due to fumigation. There have been cases in Middelburg, the Free State and Gauteng as well,” he said.
I work with inspectors from DAFF, they are good people who take their job seriously but they don’t have enough manpower to police this. For the entire Eastern Cape there are only three inspectors for example
— Dr Gerhard Verdoorn, Director of the Griffon Poison Information Centre
He said under the Hazardous Substances Act 15 of 1973 the sale of such products were meant to be monitored but this wasn’t happening.
Municipal spokesperson Msawakhe Mayisela said the environmental health department would investigate and report to the provincial health department.
“They will need to liaise with SAPS in terms of toxicological and autopsy results as part of the investigation,” he said.
"Permission does not have to be given by the municipality to fumigate any private premises. However, it is incumbent upon the owner of the property to ensure the company engaged to do the fumigation is compliant with the appropriate registration.
Environment, forestry and fisheries department spokesperson Albi Modise said aluminium phosphide is regulated and enforced by the agriculture, land reform and rural development department as well as the health department, which governs all substances categorised as hazardous to human health or the environment.
"Most of the powers of the Act are delegated down to local government level, meaning municipal health inspectors that are registered with Health Professions Council of South Africa, are responsible for enforcement of the Act and its regulations," he said.
- Additional reporting Mfundo Mkhize
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