Francois Marais

Francois Marais (1985 - 2011)

Brief overview:

Francois (26), a small livestock farmer on a Withok smallholding, Brakpan, Gauteng, was attacked by three armed men at 09h00 on 15th September 2011. One of the attackers had a firearm, the other two brandished large knives. Francois was unarmed but tried to fight off his attackers. They shot Francois twice and stabbed him.

Francois' wife, Ina (31), threw boiling water at two of the attackers, she went back inside the house to hide the children and heard gunshots. When she went back outside the attackers had fled, and she found Francois shot and stabbed.

She helped him into the bakkie (Pick-up truck), with their young children, and raced to the Dalview Clinic. He was stabilised there and transferred to the Life Glynnwood Hospital in Benoni. One of the bullets penetrated his lung and was removed during surgery. The other bullet was embedded in his spine and the doctors decided not to remove it. Francois had a second surgery on the 16th, but died from his injuries on 17th September - his son Markus' third birthday.

Brief Biography:

• Other Victims/Family
  • Francois and Ina have three sons - Francois (4), Markus (3) and Konraad (2).
• Funeral/Memorial
• The Farm/Smallholding
• The Region (Land disputes, other incidents etc.)

Attack Details:

• Date and time of attack
• Weapons
• Items Stolen
• Investigative officer/SAPS Case No:
• Torture, Gratuitous violence
• Indications of Hate Crime? Threats etc.

Perpetrator details:

• Number and Descriptions
• Arrests
• Name/s and age/s of Perpetrator/s
• Country of origin of Perpetrator/s
• Trial/Conviction

Additional Biographical Information:

Links to Media articles:

• https://web.archive.org/web/20111025101345/http://looklocal.co.za/l...
• http://censorbugbear-reports.blogspot.com/2011/09/francois-marais-d...