Godfrey Frederick Lanz Heuer

Godfrey Heuer (1916 - 1992)

Brief overview:

Godfrey (75), a farmer from Vryheid, was murdered in front of his wife Amy on 22nd August 1992.

It was established that Ntuthuko Chuene (28), and his accomplice Piet Nkosi (who was later shot and killed by the police) were the perpetrators. They stole a Rossi Special firearm, ammunition and a suitcase containing about R1 000 in cash, a pocket calculator and books. Chuene claimed he stole the guns to defend his community from the Inkatha Freedom Party.

Brief Biography:

• Other Victims/Family
• 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
  • Extract from the 2019 AfriForum Report:

"On 22 August 1992, Godfrey Frederick Lanz Heuer was murdered in front of his wife Amy on their farm near Vryheid in KwaZulu-Natal. The killer was a 28 year old man named Ntuthuko Chuene. A Rossi Special firearm, ammunition and a suitcase containing about R1 000 in cash, a pocket calculator and books were also stolen from the scene. Chuene was convicted of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment. He would later testify to the TRC that the only reason why he had committed that murder, was because he had been influenced by the ANC’s chanting of “Kill the Boer, kill the farmer”.

He continued: “I could have killed any other white man I came across at that time. My frustrations were directed to white men because they had what we did not have.”

The song was sung at various public gatherings, including a public gathering of the ANCYL in Kimberley in the Northern Cape in June 2002”

• *Extract from the TRC Pietermaritzburg, 8 October 1999. ANC, IFP MEN at TRC for KWA/NATAL Violence.

"Ntuthuko Chuene, an ANC member, is seeking amnesty for the 1992 murder of Godfrey Frederick Lanz Heuer who was also robbed of his firearm at his home in Vryheid. Chuene, who broke into his victim's home, claims the purpose of the robbery was to obtain arms and ammunitions to defend his community from the IFP.

Another ANC supporter, Dumisani Eugene Nkabinde, is applying for amnesty for killing Umzizi Francis Shabane, an alleged member of the Kapnaars gang, on March 30, 1991 in Umlazi. Shabane was accused of being part of a group collaborating with the KwaZulu Police and the IFP who were responsible for the death of two ANC members.

The committee will also hear the application of Musa Mahambane for the murder of Derek Pringle Walters at Umhlanga Rocks Centre in 1991. Mahambane and his accomplices were on a mission to rob the NBS Bank at Hilton Centre and, during a police chase, they came across Walters whom they shot dead. They were apprehended as they tried to escape in his vehicle."

"TRC AMNESTY COMMITTEE

NTHUTHUKO ERIC CHUENE APPLICANT (AM5009/97), DECISION

This is an application for amnesty in terms of Section 18 of the Promotion of National Unity and Reconciliation Act No 34 of 1995 ("the Act").

The Applicant was convicted on 21 September 1993, in the then Supreme Court sitting at Vryheid, KwaZulu Natal, of the following offences:

1. Housebreaking committed during the period 24 to 26 July 1992 at the farm Smaldeel at the home of Mr Potgieter;

2. Attempted murder of Mr Potgieter on 16 August 1992 at the farm Smaldeel;

3. The murder of Mr Godfrey Heuer on 22 August 1992 at the farm Almansnek in the district of Vryheid;

4. The robbery with aggravating circumstances of certain items from Mr and Mrs Heuer on 22 August 1992 at the farm Almansnek in the district of Vryheid;

5. Two counts involving the unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition.

The Applicant said that he had obtained his own firearm because of the attacks by the IFP on his area and the need to defend his family. Yet he obtained the firearm and ammunition for it in 1989 and never used it against the IFP. He only used it in the "operations" that formed the gist of the convictions for which he applies for amnesty. This explanation is both contradictory and improbable. Other contradictions related, inter alia, to the money stolen from the Heuers and Mr Potgieter's leather jacket.

In the result we are not satisfied that the Applicant has made full disclosure of all relevant facts and accordingly his application for amnesty is REFUSED."

Additional Biographical Information:

Links to Media articles:

• https://archive.is/dGYNW
• https://archive.vn/H7858
• http://archive.is/Pl6pE (TRC Report)
• https://www.afriforum.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/Kill-the-far... (AfriForum Report)
• Reference: FamilySearch Family Tree - SmartCopy: Jan 8 2023, 13:03:38 UTC
• https://graves-at-eggsa.org/main.php?g2_itemId=1411044