Father of three dies after assaulted by tow truck driver [VIDEO]

A family in Johannesburg is reeling in shock and reliving the pain of their beloved’s death whenever his alleged killer appears in court.

Stalin Fasser, a father of three, died after a fight with a tow-truck driver on 12 May. A month later his elderly mother breaks down when another of her sons, Elton, reports how the FirstHelp tow truck driver and his defence team looked when he made another appearance at Johannesburg Magistrates’ Court.

Her son died on Mothers Day.

Comments of a sexual nature

Elton told The Citizen that before the incident his brother had been in good spirits, spending time with his family, even dancing with them.

But when he, his partner, son and friend went to a store in Roodepoort, they were allegedly confronted by Hendrik Joubert.

ALSO READ: Mpumalanga cop gets three life sentences for killing wife and siblings

“The driver made vile comments about sexually assaulting [my brother’s] partner, referencing a cucumber he had purchased,” Elton said.

This led to a short scuffle outside the store between Fasser’s son and Joubert, with Fasser refusing to get involved at this point.

ALSO READ: Two suspects charged in connection with Khayelitsha barbershop murders

However, Joubert, in his tow truck, followed the family to a bakery where a fight ensued between Fasser, his son, and Joubert backed by some unidentified men.

It is there that Joubert allegedly struck the family’s vehicle with a chain, breaking off a side mirror, cracking the windscreen and leaving deep gouges in the car’s body.

The group caused fatal injuries to Fasser that he would later succumb to. Fasser also allegedly drove into Joubert in his haste to escape, leading to injuries Joubert would need bandages for.

Fasser then rushed to a police station on his own, with Joubert following. Another fight ensued there.

The family then met at home, where Fasser tried to recover, unaware he was dying. Joubert and several other men were filmed outside the family’s home trying to gain entry, their FirstHelp tow trucks seen in the street.

Watch a video of the incident below:

Fasser was taken to hospital but was declared dead on arrival.

Joubert was charged with murder and malicious damage to property. He pled not guilty, arguing he acted in self-defence. His next court appearance is on 20 June 2024.

Joubert also has another assault case opened against him.

ALSO READ: ActionSA says its councillor kidnapped and assaulted, told ‘to quit politics’

‘Our family is shattered’

“It has been a real struggle getting back to life, so we decided to get professional help,” Elton added to The Citizen.

“It’s hard, very difficult when someone so close to you dies in such horrible circumstances. Our family is shattered.”

However, he said time heals and the work he is doing, along with other plans he is making, will help.

“I often don’t have faith in our systems, however court today was nothing more than a Suits moment. The prosecutor was brilliant in his presentation and the shock and look on those people and their lawyers’ faces eased the pain just a tiny little bit.”

FirstHelp is a subsidiary of Help24. The company’s CEO Sheldon Grobler previously declined to comment to the media since investigations were ongoing.