Robbery gone wrong

A 35-year-old man was shot and left brain dead in front of his girlfriend at his Northwold home on 30 April.

Just four days after Jan Byles moved into his new property on 1^st Road; two armed robbers shot him on the side of face before running off with valuables including a TV, money, cellphones, two hunting guns and a revolver.

“He wanted to go out for a smoke and the guys just came into the house… They shot him once and he lost a lot of blood. They pulled me away and they asked for the safe… they threw me on the floor and tied me [on my hands and legs],”said Byle’s girlfriend Elizma Jordaan.

“I just hoped that he would survive, that they won’t rape me and that we both come out of it alive.”

The perpetrators used Jordaan’s scarf to tie her hands to prevent her from escaping.

“When they left I hopped and used a knife to cut loose and I ran screaming for help,” she said.

Neighbours Lee Roberts and Peter Schafer were the first on the scene.

“She rang our bell; she was covered in blood screaming that her boyfriend had been attacked and shot inside the house,” she said.

“If the ambulance came sooner all this could have been avoided. They went to the wrong address and took over 30 minutes to arrive. The police and the security company were here first on scene but no one had any first aid background. There is a fire department close-by here but nobody came. Everyone was helpless,” he said.

According to the residents, criminals gain access into this gated community through Golden Harvest Park.

“This park has been an issue for years. There is never any response from the council about cutting the trees. Every time they cut, they only cut were it is easy and they leave the rest.

Today we are going to cut some trees and burn all the bushes. I don’t care what is in there because whatever is in there can’t operate like a human being and has to be dealt with like a savage. A man has lost his life here and who will take responsibility,” said resident Tiago Dos Santos Serra.