(SAPS release, edited by Bev Mortimer)
An elderly couple in St Francis Bay’s Santareme suburb was attacked by two armed men at about 5 pm this evening and the husband died following the attack.
The SAPS in a press release, just issued, said a housekeeper busy outside the Sardinia Way house this evening, 15 August, was allegedly approached by two unknown men, armed with firearms. They pushed her inside the house and tied her up.
The intruders then allegedly also tied the 76 year-old woman and her 78 year-old husband up and covered all three victims’ mouths with cellotape. They then allegedly ransacked the house and assaulted the elderly couple during the process.
The suspects then demanded the keys of the safe and the wife was forced to unlock the safe, from which the armed men allegedly took an undisclosed amount of cash and other valuables and fled the scene on foot. It is unclear at this stage exactly what was taken, police said.
At 7 pm the housekeeper managed to alert neighbours, who immediately summoned an ambulance service and the police about the attack and robbery. The neighbours discovered the husband lying face down in the living room with his hands still bound and his mouth covered.
The medics discovered the man had passed on but the cause of his death is unknown at this stage, police said. The two women victims were severely traumatised and taken for medical treatment.
The name of the husband will be released at a later stage, the SAPS said.
Police have opened a murder case and a robbery case and said there is a widespread manhunt for the gunmen. St Francis Bay detectives are currently following up on all possible leads.
St Francis Chronicle 