They still wanted to say Merry Christmas.
And if she had another five minutes, Frieda van Rooyen would also have told her father how much she loved him for the last time.
But this last chance was taken away from her when her father, Coen van der Walt (67), was shot dead on Christmas Day on the farm where he lived and worked.
“If I only had five more minutes I would have told you that I love you so much dad! I would have squeezed you so tight. Now I have to greet you with a cold body! Your blood is crying out daddy, you didn’t deserve it! You and so many other farmers!” writes Frieda in a moving tribute to her father.
“I honor you for the man you have become. And I don’t have the privilege to be able to tell you that.”
According to the police, Coen and his girlfriend, Linda Thomas, were attacked in their farmhouse outside Amalia just after they had done some shopping in Schweizer-Reneke. It was initially reported that Thomas Coen’s wife was.
Lt. Col. Amanda Funani, provincial police spokesperson, says the suspect demanded money from the couple.
According to Frieda, the suspect broke in through the roof of the house. “He waited for them in the house,” says Frieda.
Neil van der Walt, Frieda’s brother, says he suspects the suspect broke in because he thought the house was empty for the holidays. His father lived on the farm and worked as a foreman for the owner.
The suspect searched the house at the time and came across Coen’s firearm.
Coen and Thomas had just returned when Thomas reportedly entered the house first and was assaulted and tied up. After this Coen followed. A struggle ensued after Coen confronted him when the suspect tried to tie him up.
In the process, Coen was shot first in the ribs and then in the head. The suspect then fled and Thomas called for help.
Coen’s vehicle, two mobile phones and an unknown amount of money and the firearm were stolen, Funani confirmed.
The vehicle was later found abandoned in the Ipelegeng informal settlement outside Schweizer-Reneke.
According to Funani, no one has yet been arrested in connection with the murder and the investigation continues.
Coen is survived by his three children, Neil, Frieda and Etienne. He will be cremated after which a funeral service will be held on January 5.
