‘Tik, codeine and affairs’: Was this ex-Bok Hannes Strydom’s ‘life in the fast lane’? [Photos]

It appears that recently deceased former Springbok lock Hannes Strydom were hiding quite a few skeletons in his cupboard…and as they come tumbling out, the sordid details of his alleged secret life paints a picture of a rugby star stripped of all his glory.

The 1995 Rugby World Cup-winning Bok died when his Toyota Hilux bakkie crashed into a minibus taxi as he was travelling to Pretoria on the N4 outside Witbank in Mpumalanga on 19 November.  

One passenger in the taxi was also killed and four others seriously injured.

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Hannes Strydom: ‘Dark depths and the devil’

At his memorial service which was held this week Wednesday, his estranged wife, Nikolie, touched on the “dark depths” Strydom was reportedly going through during the past four years.

“The devil literally came to steal Hannes away from us in 2019. But I can assure you the devil wasn’t able to steal away my and the children’s love for Hannes. We continued to support him and encourage him and also berated him. He would get angry with us, but we always showed our love towards him,” Nikolie was quoted as saying by Netwerk24.

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Hannes Strydom’s alleged link to codeine-smuggling syndicate

This after Rapport reported last Sunday on shock claims that the 58-year-old businessman, who owned the Pharma Valu group consisting of several pharmacies and a pharmaceutical wholesaler based in Pretoria, allegedly profited handsomely from a codeine-smuggling syndicate.

Before his death, Carte Blanche aired an episode in October which centered around the very same allegations which Strydom vehemently denied.

The Carte Blanche investigation, featured former Pharma Valu employees who accused Strydom of being the mastermind behind an operation in which thousands of bottles of codeine-based cough syrup – destined for the black market – were allegedly sold under the counter.

Lavish lifestyle and fast cars

The profits of the illegal sales allegedly ran into millions which, according to the claims, funded his flashy lifestyle.

According to the publication, Strydom owned three properties in Pretoria and Cape Town, purchased between 2004 and 2011 for a combined value of R48 million.

The former Bok with a need for speed (and allegedly tik) also did not hold back when it came to splashing out on several expensive cars which featured the likes of a Porsche Cayenne and a Ferrari.

The secret life of former Bok lock Hannes Strydom

According to the report, several former employees, male lovers and acquaintances made the following shock claims about Strydom.

The claims have been substantiated with video, photographic and documentary evidence presented to Rapport.

• The former rugby hero allegedly often smoked or snorted tik (methamphetamine). One individual said he used the drug with Strydom on a regular basis.

Rapport is in possession of 10 photos that show Strydom smoking what appears to be a “tik pipe”. These include a “selfie” he took of himself smoking the tik “lollie” at Pharma Valu’s head office.

• According to two of Strydom’s friends of more than 30 years, as well as two former colleagues, he behaved like a “typical tik user”, displaying psychotic and aggressive behaviour.

• After a quarrel with one of his the men he had an extra-marital affair, Strydom was captured on CCTV cameras vandalising his ex-lover’s business with a can of spray paint.

• He allegedly suffered from a “persecution complex” and installed hundreds of security cameras in his pharmacies to keep an eye on his employees.

• In 2019, Strydom was ordered by the court to remove 21 security cameras at his mega mansion in Waterkloof, Pretoria, following an urgent court application by his wife, Nikolie.

The couple, who were already estranged, were however still living together at that stage.

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Rugby glory days: Strydom and the ‘Class of 1995’

Strydom played 21 Tests for the Springboks and represented Transvaal and Northern Transvaal domestically.

President of SA Rugby Mark Alexander described Strydom as “one of the great locks of his generation” and “one of the heroes of our local game”.

“He was a hard-working lock who never shied away from getting stuck in and doing the dirty work.

The famous “Class of 1995” – which won South Africa’s first Rugby World Cup title on home soil against New Zealand’s All Blacks – has now lost six of its members: Strydom, Coach Kitch Christie, flank Ruben Kruger, scrumhalf Joost van der Westhuizen and wings James Small and Chester Williams.