Police launch manhunt after elderly couple hacked with pangas during farm attack

Police have launched a manhunt for several suspects after an elderly couple were hacked with pangas and their middle-aged son was shot in the leg during a farm attack near Nelspruit during the early hours of Sunday morning.

According to police, it’s believed that four suspects managed to enter the house through a window, while the elderly couple and their son were asleep.

Mpumalanga police spokesman Brigadier Leonard Hlathi told News24 that once the suspects were inside, they accosted the elderly couple, demanding money and beating them with pangas.

Their son woke up during the commotion and intervened, armed with his firearm.

During an exchange of fire, their son was shot in the leg, but he managed to shoot one of the suspects, Hlathi said.

The suspects, who left their firearm on the scene, allegedly took one firearm belonging to one of the victims, before they fled.

“When they were done, they [suspects] tried dragging the injured [suspect] out, but he died so they left him there,” Hlathi said.

The suspect’s body was found in the bushes, about 200 metres away from the house.

The elderly couple and their son were rushed to hospital, while police have launched a manhunt to track down the remaining attackers.

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