Rhinos rugby player shot and killed
Melmoth hunting trip ends in tragedy.
RHINOS rugby player Rainer Wellmann was killed in a tragic hunting accident near Melmoth on Saturday morning.
The 23-year-old loose-forward was out hunting with a group of friends on Boshoek farm outside Melmoth, when another hunter fired a shot at a bushpig charging out of a sugarcane field, hitting Wellmann who was stationed behind the animal.
eShowe police spokesperson Tienkie van Vuuren confirmed the incident.
‘Melmoth police are investigating a case of murder after Mr Rainer Wellmann was shot and killed.
‘It was reported that another hunter had fired shots from a shotgun when seeing a bushpig, fatally wounding Wellmann,’ said Van Vuuren.
‘He was rushed to KwaMagwase hospital, where he was declared dead.’
Wellmann was one of the top players for the Rhinos squad for most of the season after returning from the United States where he played club rugby and worked on a farm.
