Umhlali wedding venue owner killed while shielding guests

The owner of Maroupi Wedding Venue near Umhlali was shot and killed by four armed men last night.

Marius Deysel and a few guests were gathered around the braai at about 9pm when the attackers came out of the darkness and fired a warning shot. Witnesses said Deysel immediately turned and moved to intercept the men – shielding his guests – and was shot in the chest with a shotgun.

The four men, dressed in beanies and hoodies, then herded the guests into one of the buildings, demanding all their valuables.

“They also attempted to get into the safe but were unsuccessful,” said Rex Hunt of Alpha Security.

Deysel’s brother, Andre, watched as his brother bled to death from the gunshot wound, while his attackers refused to let him help.

“I begged them to please let me help my brother,” Andre told The Courier.

“One of the men said ‘Sit down f###er, or I’ll shoot you too’.”

The men assaulted the guests, knocking them around during their search for valuables, before escaping through the hole they had earlier cut in the property’s electric fence and fleeing into the sugar cane on the farm.

Meanwhile, having heard a gunshot, a gardener apparently sent an SMS to Deysel’s wife, who alerted Alpha Security.

“Alpha Security alerted IPSS Medical Rescue and Umhlali Police,” said Hunt.

“It is likely that they knew who Marius was, as they called him by name during the attack.”

It was reported that a police K9 unit followed the attackers’ tracks in the dark for about a kilometre before losing the trail where they believe the men climbed into a car and drove away.

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