Fochville police’s communication officer, Sgt Tunase Elsie Majola, says the 33-year-old Natasha Frederika Wheeler Barnard was allegedly severely assaulted at the Boulevard Tavern in Fochville on 4 March. After the assault, people who were also at the tavern put Wheeler Barnard in her vehicle and drove her home.
Upon their arrival, Wheeler Barnard’s mother noticed that she was not breathing and immediately called an ambulance. Paramedics soon arrived at the scene but found that Wheeler Barnard had already succumbed to her injuries. Police soon started investigating the murder and found that some of Wheeler’s alleged killers were among the “good Samaritans” who had taken her home afterwards. No one had reported the fight to the police. On Tuesday, 5 April, the police arrested five people in connection with Wheeler’s murder.
The suspects’ ages range from 23 to 58 years old. “Two have been charged with murder while the other three are charged with being accessories and for obstructing the course of justice,” says Majola. According to Wheeler Barnard’s father, Mr John Wheeler, her family is devastated by her death.
“She was the friendliest person and people knew her like that, even from school,” he says. What makes Wheeler Barnard’s death even more tragic is that she had just moved to Fochville to be closer to her family. She previously lived in Modimolle, formerly Nylstroom and had been living in Fochville for only four weeks when she was killed. She leaves behind her 10-year old son, Henko, her daughter, Alphea (13) and her parents. All the suspects appeared in court on Wednesday. None of them received bail. The case was postponed until 11 April.
“The acting station commander, Captain Tshielo, welcomes the arrests and sends his condolences to the family. He applauds the members for working hard to give the family answers to what happened to their daughter,” says Majola. (Although the Fochville Police said in their official press statement that they arrested six suspects, they later changed this number to only five. – Editor)
