Elderly man shot in Brits farm attack

Gerhard and Beatrice Badenhorst were fast asleep when a robber broke open the security gate that leads to their house.

“When my father woke up, there was a robber standing over him with a knife. My dad grabbed his firearm, which was nearby, but was overpowered by the suspect, who then shot him,” the couple’s son Johan Badenhorst told the Kormorant.

The suspect allegedly fled after shooting Gerhard.

ALSO READ: Women fight for their lives during attempted Brits farm attack

The couple called their son, and while he was running towards the house, he saw the suspect running away.

The gunshot wound. Image: Kormorant

The Krokodil community policing forum (CPF) were called for help, and were on the scene within minutes.

“Our trackers only found one set of footprints. The suspect was probably alone,” said Chris Degenaar of the CPF.

“Luckily it was only a flesh wound, and my father is recovering at home,” Johan said.

“The robber was so heinous that, while my parents were still asleep, he stole my mother’s cellphone out of her handbag, as well as clothes in the living room, and went through all their things. He spoke Afrikaans, and we suspect it is someone who knows the farm or the area, because the dogs didn’t bark.”

Johan is offering a R10,000 reward for any information that can lead to the arrest of the suspect.

In a separate incident, two elderly men, aged 80 and 84, as well as a 48-year-old woman, were assaulted and robbed by three attackers in Brits. The suspects used a garden fork and steel pipe to assault them.

According to Brits police spokesperson Sgt Tumelo Menyatso, three men attacked the victims in their Elandsrand home.

“The suspects were armed with a garden fork and a steel pipe.”

The men were viciously attacked with the suspects’ weapons, and the woman was also attacked and injured in the attack.

The robbers made off with a TV set, a pistol and sound equipment.

The men were taken to the Brits Mediclinic, both in serious condition, and one had to be sent to a different hospital for specialist treatment.

“Police are looking for anyone with information on the attacks, and are urging people to contact Brits police on 012 381 6077/6078 or superintendent Leonard Thoboka on 012 381 6034.

This article was translated from Afrikaans. Read the original article here.

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