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Tragic grisly murder of family! 21-year-old Henri van Breda goes on trial for butchering his millionaire parents and brother in South African axe attack bloodbath

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Henri van Breda, 21, goes on trial Monday, in the grisly murder of nearly all of his family two years ago
He allegedly butchered his wealthy parents and brother in South African axe attack bloodbath on Jan 27, 2015
Martin van Breda, 54,  his wife Teresa, 55, and Rudi, 22, were found dead in their home, victims of an axe attack
18-year-old Marli Van Breda, 18, survived the attack despite having her jugular vein slashed
Multi-millionaire van Breda was CEO of Engel & Völkers, Australia
The van Breda family had recently moved back to South Africa after several years in Australia
Henri van Breda stands to inherit a share of more than $16 million from the brutal killing of his parents, along with his sister Marli
He is facing three counts of murder, one count attempted murder, and one count obstructing of justice
Henri Van Breda5Henri van Breda [center], steps out of the High Court in Cape Town
Martin and Teresa Van Breda and their son Rudi were subjected to the horror attack from their other son Henry stands back left 1 Henri van Breda [Top, L – R ], with brother Rudi  and dad Martin. The other survivor, his sister Marli, is seen with mom Teresa in the front row. Henri is on trial for murdering all but Marli who survived the savage axe attack

The final phase in a gruesome murder case begins tomorrow when Henri van Breda goes on trial accused of hacking his wealthy parents and brother to death with an axe.
Henri van Breda, 21, stands to inherit a share of $16.2 million from the brutal killing of his parents, along with his sister Marli, who was left fighting for her life in the frenzied attack at their luxury family home in Cape Town, two years ago.
On Wednesday, January 27, 2015, Martin van Breda, 54, the managing director of Engel & Völkers in Australia, his wife Teresa, 55, and their son Rudi, 22, were found dead in their home, victims of an axe attack.

Teresa and Martin van Breda1Teresa and Martin van Breda. Their 21-year-old son Henri is on trial for their murder

Their daughter 16-year-old Marli was in a critical condition having sustained serious head injuries and youngest son Henri, 20, was slightly injured in the incident with only minor lacerations to show.
According to court papers Henri called his girlfriend at 4:42 am which went unanswered and then searched the internet for local emergency numbers. In an audio recording made to emergency services operators “My … my family and me were attacked … by a guy with an axe.”.
The call was made almost 3 hours later.

Henri van Breda stallegedly butchered his wealthy parents and brother with an axe5.jpgHenri van Breda [right], is accused of murdering his parents and brother with an axeHenry van Breda (pictured) walking into Stellenbosch police with a woman who appeared to be his lawyer as he hands himself cver to police on Monday afternoon.jpgHenri van Breda seen walking with his attorney turns himself in to the authorities

The family had recently moved back to South Africa after spending several years living in Australia.
18-year-old Marli, who survived the slashing of her jugular vein, is listed as a state’s witness against her brother, but prosecutors will have to make a final decision to call her to the witness stand. Though her testimony would be crucial, the only other witness to the crime reportedly, remembers nothing about the events of January 2015 that left decimated her family and put her in a coma, news.com.au reports.

Henry's sister Marli Van Breda s2Marli and accused brother Henri, have only had supervised contact since the grisly triple murder

The family’s friends and own social media feeds suggested they were a close-knit unit who enjoyed all the exotic travel and outdoor pursuits their immense fortune could buy.
Martin Van Breda had amassed a fortune from property and other investments and after seven years in Perth and on the Sunshine Coast, he, his 55 year-old wife Teresa and three children had moved back to South Africa for a lucrative business deal in the months before the killings.
Court documents detail a furious family row was heard at their  home on the exclusive De Zalze golf estate in the hours leading up to the savage attack on Martin, Teresa and their son Rudi. Henry stands back. When forensic officers were dispatched to the home the next morning, they were confronted with a scene of unspeakable violence.

Rudi and Henri van Breda1.jpg
Rudi van Breda [left], allegedly was hacked to death by younger brother Henri [right], in a 2015 axe attack. His parents also died in the hatchet attack

The body of 21 year-old engineering student Rudi was found on a blood-soaked bed next to his father Martin, 54. Both had suffered fatal blows with an axe to their heads.
Teresa van Breda had been cut down on the balcony of the same upstairs room, also dead from a gaping head wound, along with Marli, who was discovered close to death with a gash to her neck.
A large knife from the kitchen downstairs and the murder weapon — a bloodied axe, weighing 4.5kg — was found near their bodies.
Only Henri, then a science undergraduate, escaped the furious onslaught with minor cuts, described in medical reports as “superficial” and “self-inflicted”.

Henry's sister Marli Van Breda survived the attack despite having her jugular vein slashedMarli van Breda escaped with her life despite having her jugular vein slashed, however it left her with amnesia of events

He had waited four hours after the 3am killings before raising the alarm, after trying his girlfriend first.
A recording of his 7am call to emergency services was leaked to the press and in it, the then-20-year-old is heard calmly reporting how his family had been attacked with an axe, before suppressing a giggle as he explains how they are all “bleeding from the head”.
In later interviews with detectives, Henri claimed that an axe-wielding stranger had breached the estate’s state-of-the-art security to set upon his family members in their beds while he was in the bathroom.
He described watching as the lone assailant mercilessly killed his family one by one before hurling the murder weapon at his own head, knocking him out cold.
For 18 months after the massacre, the police appeared to be making little or no progress in their murder investigation, triggering speculation about whether anyone would ever face charges for the deaths.

Henry's sister Marli Van Breda 3Marli has not been allowed to see her brother since unsupervised the attack two years ago
Henri Van Breda with girlfriend Danielle Janse Van RensburgHenri van Breda was arrested on a drugs charge, along with his girlfriend Danielle Janse Van Rensburg [right], for cannabis possession in 2016

Marli slowly recovered from her injuries and returned to her exclusive boarding school and Henri left the care of his aunt and uncle, elected to move in with his girlfriend. Initially investigators were not making much headway with the investigation.
Suddenly on June 14, 2016, Henri van Breda surrendered himself to his local police station after hearing they were about to pick him up. He appeared in the Stellenbosch magistrates court to face three counts of murder, one count attempted murder and obstruction of justice.
Bail was set at R100,000 (the equivalent of approximately $6,500) and van Breda was released under the conditions that he report to his local police station regularly and not leave the Western Cape.
A September 2016 pre-trial hearing  at the Western Cape High Court saw the case  postponed until November as state prosecutors requested an extension to obtain outstanding.evidence.
Since his release on bail, Van Breda was arrested on a drugs charge, along with his girlfriend Danielle Janse Van Rensburg, 21, whom he met at cooking school in the months after his parents and brother were killed. The latest charge mirrors reports that Van Breda had a history of using drugs which had put him in conflict with his parents.
A teenager living in a shack near the van Breda family home told South Africa’s Sunday Times newspaper he had been paid as a “drug runner” by Henri Van Breda who, allegedly has a crystal meth addiction.

Henri van Breda stallegedly butchered his wealthy parents and brother with an axe3.jpgHenri claimed the lone assailant knocked him out cold, but investigators say  his own injuries were minor and appeared self-inflicted

Another newspaper report suggested Van Breda had spent time in rehab in recent years and had his allowance cut by his concerned parents in the weeks leading up to their deaths.
Henri’s current girlfriend, Janse Van Rensburg has indicated she will be supporting him throughout his murder trial and has declared herself to be “100 per cent” convinced of his innocence.

Narita du Toit, sister of the murdered Teresa van Breda, with friends and family after yesterday's memorial service
Narita du Toit, sister of the murdered Teresa van Breda, with friends and family after her sister’s memorial service

As the case which has polarized the van breda family and friends reaches its dramatic climax, it seems the fate of the family’s fortunes must also be settled. Some of the relatives have come in support of henri’s claims of innocence. André van Breda, the twin brother of Martin van Breda, said the family would stand behind Henri, 20, “no matter what”.
But whether Van Breda himself will inherit his parents wealth remains to be seen — under South African law, no one convicted of killing can profit financially from their crimes.

 

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  1. South African court convicts rich kid who hacked his millionaire parents, brother to death in frenzied axe attack – Dismisses claim by Henri van Breda that intruders killed his family – KonnieMoments

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