Piet Retief – The wife of Mpumalanga farmer Johannes van Zyl, 84, who was beaten to death with crutches at the weekend allegedly by his employee, has died in hospital, police said on Tuesday.
Sergeant Gerald Sedibe confirmed that the 55-year-old woman died in the early hours of Tuesday morning.Charlotte van Zyl had been hospitalised after sustaining serious injuries on Saturday.
The alleged attacker, a Swazi national, was an employee on the farm in Dirkiesdorp near Piet Retief. When police arrived on the scene, they found the elderly man lying in the bathroom.
He had sustained serious injuries all over his body and died on the scene.The 35-year-old was arrested on Saturday and was expected to appear in the Piet Retief Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday on charges of murder.