Andre Rheeder (47) from Polokwane lost his left eye just before Christmas after being in an attack on a family farm. He was repeatedly hit with a machete on the head and body.
Andre is still in the Mankweng hospital outside the city after the attack on December 20, 2014 just after midnight.
His left eye was so badly damaged in the attack that it had to be removed on Christmas Eve.
Babette Rheeder, his ex-wife, said his right arm was broken in several places and he will have to undergo surgery soon.
Andre looked after his sister’s Estelle Pretorius and Hendry her husband’s farm while they were on vacation at the coast. The farm is about 12 kilometers outside Louis Trichardt (Makhado).
The three attackers broke a windows to get access to the farmhouse. He was sleeping and apparently did not hear anything. The dogs apparently did not bark as well.
“Andre woke up when the attackers shined flashlights in his eyes” said Babette.
One of the men jumped on top Andre while the other man repeatedly hit him with a machete. Some of the blows hit him in his left eye.
They tied him up with an electric cable. They stole his cell phone and weapons in the house. The men fled on foot. They then allegedly took a taxi to Johannesburg.
Andre could not free himself and continued to scream for help. Workers who lived nearby heard the cry.
The workers took him to a hospital in Louis Trichardt from where he was transferred to the Mankweng hospital.
Brigadier Hangwani Mulaudzi, communications chief of police in Limpopo, said two of the men were arrested in Tembisa on the East Rand.
They may be linked with several other crimes including robberies, a rape, kidnapping and murder. Mulaudzi said stolen goods worth R68 000 were found with them.
The two men have already appeared briefly in the Tembisa Magistrate’s Court. They will remain in custody until they have to appear in court later this month.
South Africa Today – South Africa News
