A double tragedy occurred in the early hours of Friday, June 17, at Forever Resorts in Bela-Bela after a security guard and a rhino was shot.
In a statement from the Forever Resorts, given to “Die Pos” it said that seven gunmen had access to the reserve and were hunting rhinos at the resort. Three security guards of the Protrack Anti Poaching Unit, who confronted the raiders, were attacked, tied up and detained.
One of the guards was shot in the leg and bled to death after the Raiders entered the Rhino camp. The Raiders then shot a rhino, and poached the rhino horn and fled, according to the statement.
Ao. Jannie Venter, the investigating officer, said police were investigating a case of murder and illegal hunting.
He said two of the raiders stayed at the guards while the rest targeted the rhino. The wounded security guard reportedly told the men stated that he is cold, and they made a small fire for warmth, said Venter. The guards who were tied up with cable ties was near the fire and managed to melt the plastic ties. Immediately they went and sought help. The police were called, and members of the Heritage Protection Group (HPG) responded to the call.
Ben Engelbrecht of HPG said on inquiry that they have seven tracks through the reserve to the R101 to Pienaarsrivier where the tracks stopped. While the search team was searching the area for clues, they found an ax, a long knife, and a camera. The camera belonged to the guard who died. A firearm was also later found in the area.
The case has since been transferred to the police’s organized crime unit in Polokwane, said Venter. The guard’s autopsy was held on Tuesday, 21 June. The name of the deceased cannot currently be announced. He was originally from Giyani, a representative of Protrack told The Post.
Forever Resorts’s statement reads that it be treated as an exceptional incident because it occurred in a remote part of the park, away from the guests.
The resort wants to reassure guests that the resort is safe for visitors, and the police are investigating the case.
In a separate incident, on Sunday, June 19, a man was killed in the early hours at his home in Extension 5 in Bela-Bela township. Sonti John Ntshudisane (48) was stabbed by three men with a bottle and beaten to death with a rock, said Venter.
At around 10:00 on Sunday morning the police arrested three men with links to the murder. They will soon appear in the Bela Bela Magistrate’s Court.
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