Five accused to appear in court on Friday for Strydomblok farm attack
The five men accused of murdering Deon de Bruyn and seriously injuring Estelle Jansen in a farm attack two weeks ago will appear in the Komatipoort Magistrate's Court for the third time on Friday.
KOMATIPOORT – The community is expected to gather at the local Magistrate’s Court on Friday in support of the De Bruyn family and Estelle Jansen during the hearing of the five accused in the Strydomblok farm attack case.
The accused appeared in court on Friday and the case was postponed.
Rawun Mhlanga (28), Derrick Makamo (24), Sifiso Madonsela (33), Oscar Chauke (36) and Solomon Msimango (33) were arrested in various locations in the Tonga area on June 20 and appeared in court the next day.
The five men are accused of fatally shooting the 25-year-old Deon de Bruyn, a farm manager, in his home on Simonsvlei Farm in Strydomblok on June 17. Deon’s employer, Jansen (59) survived being shot several times. She was admitted to Mediclinic Nelspruit and afterwards spent some time recovering at a family member’s home.
READ: Family and friends mourn Deon de Bruyn’s death in farm attack
After the incident police and local security structures teamed up to track down and arrest five suspects in connection with the farm attack.
Komatipoort Community Safety’s management, supported by local farmers, promised a R50 000 reward for any information that could lead to the suspects’ arrest. They were successful within three days of the attack.
The five suspects appeared in the Komatipoort Periodical Court on Thursday on charges of murder and attempted murder, as well as four other charges relating to the incident. The suspects were remanded in custody and appeared in the same court on Friday to start the formal bail application process.
Susan de Bruyn, Deon’s mother stated that the family is very thankful for the good work the local police, detectives, security services and community members did. “They told us that they only received positive leads,” she said.
READ: Police sweep Komatipoort for illegal activities
The family was grateful for all the support they received and the presence of so many farmers at the court case despite the short notice.
“We’re going to be at every court appearance. We want to keep up the pressure. Things like this, especially in small towns tend to easily become a memory. We hope this can give the rest of the country more hope to keep going and to not stay quiet,” Susan said.
