Manhunt after elderly St Francis Bay man dies during armed house robbery
Humansdorp - The South African Police Service in St Francis Bay have launched a manhunt for two male suspects who robbed an elderly couple in Sardinia 'Weg', St Francis Bay at about 17:00 on Thursday.
"It is alleged that the housekeeper was busy outside the house, when she was approached by two unknown males armed with firearms," said police spokesperson, Captain Gerda Swart.
"The suspects pushed the housekeeper to the inside of the house and tied her up.
"The suspects then tied the 76-year-old woman and her 78-year-old husband up and covered all three victims mouths with sellotape."
Capt Swart said that the suspects then ransacked the house and also assaulted the elderly couple during the robbery.
"The suspects demanded the keys of the safe and the 76-year-old woman was forced to unlock it. The suspects took an undisclosed amount of cash and other valuables and fled the scene on foot."
She adde that the housekeeper managed to alert the neighbours at around 19:00, who immediately alerted the ambulance services and the police of the robbery.
"Neighbours also discovered the elderly man lying face down in the living room, with his hands still bound and his mouth covered. The medics discovered that the elderly man had passed on," Capt Swart said.
"The cause of death is not known at this stage. The two female victims were severely traumatized and taken for medical treatment.
"The name of the 78-year-old man will be released on a later stage.
"Police have opened a case of house robbery and a second count of murder."
Humansdorp SAPS Cluster Commander, Brigadier John Lebok, condemned the attack on the vulnerable elderly victims in the strongest possible terms.
He said: "Members from the South African Police Service will not rest until the suspects are apprehended".
St Francis Bay detectives are currently following up on all possible leads.
Follow more RNEWS articles, subscribe to our YouTube channel and for breaking news LIKE us on Facebook. For news on the Western Cape click here.
For great savings on life’s little pleasures visit Bargain Buys! Know somebody who is getting married, Wedding and Function can assist. Have kids, then you need to visit Kids Connection. Enjoy food and travel, then visit Home Food and Travel. Need assistance with an online presence, visit Agency One.
Related Stories
As if five days of load shedding - which included Stage 4 load shedding, were not enough, power utility Eskom on Monday announced it had escalated to Stage 6 rotational load shedding - the first time in South Africa's history...
The Peddie SAPS Detective Unit is looking for relatives or...
Police in Tsomo recovered the bodies of the family, who were...
Walmer detectives, in Port Elizabeth, are urgently trying to trace...
Police in Uitenhage are investigating a case of murder after a businessman aged 67 was fatally shot outside his shop in Uitenhage on Monday morning, at around 1am...
Kwazakele police members arrested a 37-year-old female suspect for the possession of stolen goods on Sunday afternoon while she was taking a bus out of Port Elizabeth, presumed en-route to Zimbabwe...
The Eastern Cape Provincial Government on Monday joined...
The Democratic Alliance (DA) in the Eastern Cape says the number of reservists in the Eastern Cape SAPS has declined to a third of what it used to be, resulting in a massive blow to community safety in the province...
After initially announcing that it would implement Stage 2 load shedding on Monday morning, Eskom again escalated to Stage 4 load shedding...
After shocking South Africa by jumping from Stage 2 loadshedding to Stage 4 rotational loadshedding on Friday, Eskom later announced it will shift back to Stage 2 for the remainder of Friday until 23:00 on Saturday...