Nyanga is mourning the death of veteran actor Chris April who was beaten by robbers in his home.
The 84-year-old had been in and out of hospital since the attack two months ago, and on March 31 he sadly died in hospital.
The elderly star had been sleeping in his Lindela Road home in Mau-Mau when the skelms broke in.
According to family spokesperson Johnson Puza, he recognised one of the robbers.
“He was alone on 6 February, thieves broke into his home, they caught him in his sleep around 4am, during load shedding. They took his belongings and when they were about to leave, he recognised one of them, thus they came back and injured him terribly,” he said.
“He was taken to Groote Schuur Hospital after concerned neighbours heard his dogs barking. Since then he had been in and out of hospital until his passing on 31 March in Lentegeur District Hospital.”
On Wednesday during April’s memorial service held in the Zolani Centre in Nyanga, neighbour Malibongwe Sophangisa said Law Enforcement found two guys walking with a wheelie bin and when they checked inside, they found the stolen items.
“They refused to divulge where they got the stolen property. I found that one of the suspects is our neighbour and Chris would send him to the shops,” said Malibongwe.
“The house keys, his cellphone and wallet with cards were not there, the suspects told us that they had given them to friends. We hunted the friends and found some of the things.”
The two suspects were charged with possession of stolen property and attempted murder and were released on the day Chris died.
“When they came out, we took them back to the police station and they were then charged with murder,” added Malibongwe.
Police spokesperson Malcolm Pojie confirmed two men, aged 16 and 20 years old, were arrested in connection with the incident.
“The case is currently before the Athlone Magistrate’s Court with the accused who last appeared on 5 April.”
April started his acting career in the 1980s and starred alongside Hollywood stars like Forest Whitaker in Zulu, John Kani in Final Solution and Adam Sandler.
He also featured in local prankster Leon Schuster’s movies like Mama Jack. At the time of his murder, he was working on the German TV series Heaven Africa.
Fellow actor, Thembani Luzipho, said: “He is remembered for the SABC 2 series Stokvel.
“He liked painting and drawing and he used to write and produce plays in Nyanga.
“He played flute and percussion. He was an inspiration and always ready to smile.”
Nephew Thabo April said at the memorial: “He was known as Chris April, Bra Spokes or Tshezi.
“He grew up in Surrey Estate; they were forcefully removed to Nyanga. Today he is a well-known actor, he did many more things like sports and music.
“He told us acting was not easy to get into during the apartheid days, but he didn’t give up. He said he didn’t want to end up as an unknown person.
“We are here as his family to honour him, he was loving and he was kind. We thank him for the role he played in real life, many benefited from his skills.”
mandilakhe.tshwete@inl.co.za