South African police have arrested five suspects in connection with an attack on a 50-year-old cattle farmer who was shot and assaulted during a robbery at his farm in Ventersdorp, North West Province.
The victim, Donovan Marx, was attacked last Wednesday after returning to his home, where a group of armed men had reportedly confronted a worker who was mowing the lawn.
Police said the suspects tied the worker’s hands and feet before demanding to know Marx’s whereabouts.
When the farmer arrived, two of the attackers allegedly approached him and shot him in the upper body before taking him into the house, where he was tied up and stabbed.
The assailants ransacked the property, stole three firearms from a safe and fled in Marx’s vehicle. The worker later managed to free himself and call for help.
Marx was taken to hospital, where he remains under medical care. Reports indicate that he may require prosthetic ears after doctors were unable to save them.
His family welcomed the arrests, saying the legal process should now take its course.
South Africa’s Agriculture Minister Willie Aucamp condemned the incident, describing it as a senseless and barbaric act. Ian Cameron, who chairs Parliament’s police committee, also commended officers for the arrests and called for a thorough investigation.
The five suspects, aged between 26 and 56, are expected to appear in court on Tuesday. They face charges including house robbery, attempted murder and unlawful possession of firearms and ammunition.
The attack has renewed public concern over violent crime in South Africa. However, claims that attacks on white farmers amount to a genocide against white people have been widely discredited, with crime data showing that most victims of crime in the country are black.
