Authorities investigating the murder of an elderly South African couple in the Kruger National Park believe the victims’ missing vehicle may have crossed into neighbouring Mozambique through a damaged fence in the northern section of the reserve.
The victims, Dina Marais (73) and Ernst Marais (71) from Mossel Bay, were found dead in the Levubu River near Crooks Corner on Friday afternoon after tourists spotted two bodies floating in the water and alerted park authorities.
The couple had last been seen on Wednesday morning, 20 May, at the Pafuri picnic site in the northern region of the park. A search operation was launched after they failed to return to their camp.
Limpopo provincial police commissioner Lieutenant General Thembi Hadebe said preliminary investigations showed the couple had suffered violent injuries.
“The male victim sustained stab wounds to the upper body, while the female victim also suffered severe upper body injuries, allegedly inflicted with a sharp object,” Hadebe said.
Police have opened cases of murder and hijacking.
The victims’ vehicle, a green Ford Ranger double cab, remains missing. South African National Parks (SANParks) spokesperson Reynold Thakhuli said preliminary ranger investigations pointed to the possibility that the vehicle exited the park through a fence leading into Mozambique rather than through an official gate.
“The vehicle has not been found, but our rangers have done some preliminary investigations, and it has been discovered that tyre tracks are actually pointing us to the car having exited the park through a fence in Mozambique,” Thakhuli said.
He added that SANParks surveillance systems last detected the vehicle on the day the couple disappeared.
“We’ve got technology within the park. We have seen it as it came in, and we’ve seen it on the days that they were here in the park, but we have not seen it since Wednesday when they disappeared,” he said.
Thakhuli described the incident as unprecedented in the park’s 100 year history and said SANParks was reassessing security measures in remote areas of the reserve.
Tourism Minister Patricia de Lille expressed condolences to the victims’ family and stressed the importance of tourist safety, while Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment Willie Aucamp said he had engaged SANParks leadership to ensure full cooperation with the South African Police Service investigation.
SANParks officials and police representatives have met with the family and pledged continued support as investigations continue and the search for the missing vehicle intensifies.