Engelbrecht says that she grew her show during lock-down, and now — three years later — True Crime South Africa is a top crime podcasts at three million downloads to date.

Transforming these crime stories from English to Afrikaans is Gerda de Sousa, a newscaster in South Africa.

"This is a breakthrough podcast project for Jacaranda FM as it's the first series in which we capture the listener's imagination with true crime stories that come from our country, translated specifically for our Afrikaans market," says de Sousa.

The first six episodes focus on the most famous true crime events that still has the country talking. The stories that are told include:
  • the Lotter family murders
  • the Krion scheme that almost ruined Vanderbijlpark financially
  • the Griekwastad murders that shocked the country, and
  • the story behind the Krugersdorp murders that recently made national headlines again.

"You might think you know the whole story, but wait until you hear these podcasts," adds de Sousa.

The Afrikaans launched on Tuesday, 16 August on Jacaranda FM's JacPod. A new episode will be released every second Tuesday.

"Behind every single one of the stories told on True Crime South Africa are many very real human beings. It's those victims whose voices are now getting even greater reach," says Engelbrecht.

"Stories are always more impactful when they're being told in your home language — in a tongue that resonates with you — so I hope this opens up a whole new world for Afrikaans listeners," adds Engelbrecht. 

"I am so grateful that Jacaranda FM reached out, came up with this idea and invested the time and resources to make this a reality. To have my podcast and work recognised as being worthy of a platform on a radio station like this, is just beyond surreal," Engelbrecht says. 

"Having Gerda de Sousa, a voice that has become so familiar and beloved to so many Jacaranda listeners, narrating the podcast is the perfect fit and I'm honoured to have her involved," Engelbrecht adds.

The station says that Jacaranda FM's managing director Deirdre King had penned a radio trends article referring to the upswing trend in cross-cultural audio content earlier in 2022.

"It's with this that we developed this podcast to cater specifically for our Afrikaans speaking fans — in the language they love," concludes Hennie Myburgh, programming manager at Jacaranda FM.

Individuals are encouraged to visit the station's podcast site to listen to the new podcast.

For more information, visit www.jacarandafm.com. You can also follow Jacaranda FM on Facebook, Twitter or on Instagram.