Pinnacle Point attack: husband still in hospital

MOSSEL BAY NEWS - The widower of the woman who was killed in an attack at Pinnacle Point Estate suffers from Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.

This is according to the family’s attorney, who has been a house friend of the family for 30 years, Llewelyn Curlewis.

“He was the most vulnerable of the two,” Curlewis said of Johannes Style Willemse (85), who is still in hospital.

“Marietha was fine [prior to the attack].” Johannes was admitted to hospital on the morning of 4 June with stab wounds, mainly to the upper body, and cuts", Curlewis said. Johannes is in a stable condition.

Marietha, aged 79, died of a stab wound to the neck in the attack, police spokesperson Captain Malcolm Pojie said. After the attack, Johannes went to get help and the body of Marietha was found in a chair in the couple’s home. Police were called and also Johannes was taken to hospital.

Johannes Style Willemse married Marietha Beukes in May 1967. At the time of the attack on 4 June, they were living next door to their daughter Mia, in Albatrosweg, Pinnacle Point.
Mia Heuer was on honeymoon when the attack occurred.

She returned from honeymoon when she was informed of the attack and is now home. Her sister, known by her nickname Jeanné (Jean-nita) Robinson, flew from Dubai to come to Mossel Bay after she was informed of the death of her mother. The sisters’ brother, Louw, is arriving at 15:00 today from Pretoria, where he lives.

The couple had been living in Pinnacle Point for two years, having retired to the estate from northern KwaZulu-Natal, where they had farmed.

Curlewis said: “We are giving police the opportunity to do their work, to find the perpetrators and for justice to be served. We would like to see some answers from security personnel. One of the reasons the couple moved there was that they wanted to be in one of the best security estates in the country.”

An informed source, who did not wish to be named, told the Mossel Bay Advertiser: “This incident is very strange for Pinnacle Point."

"You don’t think of robbery here. It’s very safe. You can’t enter the estate unless you have authorised access. You have to say where you are going at the entrance. You can’t just come in. Access is strictly controlled."

“People don’t lock up. People go anywhere and leave the doors and windows open. Every construction vehicle that comes in and out of Pinnacle Point gets checked by security personnel at the entrance to the estate.

“The only place they could have entered is from the St Blaize trail. People can just walk in from there.”

However, Pinnacle Point said in a media statement on the night of Sunday, 5 June: “Video footage was provided to the police to assist in their investigations. At this stage, no suspects have been identified.

"The police and Pinnacle Point Security will continue with investigations."

The media statement notes: “The estate has state-of-the-art security cameras and systems in place 24 hours a day and at this stage, internal investigations have revealed no defects or system breakdowns over the period that the incident may have occurred.

“The 438-hectare fenced estate is traversed by the public St Blaize walking trail, over which a servitude is registered. Access to the estate via the trail is monitored 24 hours a day by guards stationed at the entrances as well as by thermal and analytical security cameras.

“The estate borders approximately 4,3km of rocky coastline with high cliffs and is surrounded by densely bushed public land elsewhere.”

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