Michael Thomson

Michael Thomson (1967 - 2007)

Brief overview:

Mike (39), was shot in the torso, stabbed, then shot in the head, at his home in Craighall Park, Johannesburg, on 27th September 2007. He opened his French door to go out of his bedroom, and was attacked by five armed males. They had jumped over his neighbours wall and gained access to his property. Mike was first shot in the torso, but he still managed to fight back and disarm one of the attackers, and throw another perpetrator into the swimming pool. He jumped into the pool to try and drown the attacker, but he was armed with a screwdriver, and stabbed Mike 14 times. Another of the four then shot Mike in the back of the head.

Two of the attackers were already inside the house, with guns held against Mike's 11 and 9-year-old children, and his wife Lorna. Their 7-year-old child was asleep in bed. It was this child who found Mike dead in the pool

Due to lack of progress in the investigation, the family teamed up with 'The DNA Project', which works with Parliament to get legislation around the use of DNA to strengthen court cases. Five months after Mike's murder there was a break-through in the case. A man in Alexandra was found in possession of Mike's firearm. After investigating further, it was uncovered that the gang members had been out on bail when they murdered Mike.

Brief Biography:

• Other Victims/Family
• Funeral/Memorial
• The Street/Suburb
• The Region (Land disputes, other incidents etc.)
  • It was uncovered that the perpetrators who attacked the family and murdered Mike, were known as the Razor Gang. They committed violent armed robberies across northern Johannesburg. Their modus operandi was always very well planned - to tie up and torture their victims, to ransack the house and, on some occasions, to rape the women.

Attack Details:

• Date and time of attack
• Weapons
• Items Stolen
  • The attackers stole valuables, Mike's firearm and his car.
• 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
  • Two members of the gang had pleaded guilty and turned state witness against co-accused Razor Zulu and another suspect named Stofele. They were given 25 and 20 years respectively.
  • On Tuesday 26th July 2016 Razor Zulu was sentenced to 15 years for armed robbery and 20 years for murder. The sentence will run concurrently with the 37 years he is serving at present, it will add to the years and he will not be eligible for parole. The final outcome was that of the five members of the gang, three are in prison, one was killed during a shoot after escaping from prison and Stofele was released for lack of evidence against him.

Additional Biographical Information:

Shared on a discussion forum by his mother Diana.

"My son Michael Thomson was murdered in his home on the 27th September 2007. He was stabbed and shot in an armed robbery. It occurred in Buckingham Ave in Craighall Park. He was a father of three and an amazing human being. He was killed just two weeks before his 40th birthday. He was killed by the Razor Gang who thankfully are behind bars.

POSTED BY DIANA THOMSON | APRIL 4, 2018"

Links to Media articles:

• https://archive.is/67Ani (Mike Thomson Change a Life Trust)

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Michael "Mike" Thomson (1968 - 2007)

• http://archive.vn/IdbIq
• https://www.pressreader.com/south-africa/business-day/20131105/2817...
• http://archive.is/kxHIG
• http://archive.is/67Ani
• Reference: MyHeritage Family Trees - SmartCopy: Dec 19 2022, 16:26:58 UTC