A man shot an intruder in self-defence but was later convicted of serious charges for actions taken afterward. (Photo: iStock) 
Woken up in the middle of the night, confronted by two intruders in his farmhouse, a man fired a single shot.
That shot tore through Shalton Bruintjies’s body, perforating his heart and lungs, and he took a couple of steps before collapsing on the floor of Stephanus Samson’s kitchen.
Last week, Judge Avinash Govindjee of the Gqeberha Division of the High Court in the Eastern Cape found that Samson had acted in self-defence when he pulled the trigger — but ruled that what followed was unlawful, convicting Samson on four other serious charges.
He now awaits sentencing for the unlawful acts after the shooting — including kidnapping, attempted murder and defeating the ends of justice — which the judge found to be indefensible despite the initial act of self-defence.
In the hours that followed the fatal shooting in September 2023, he tied up Bruitjies’s accomplice, Renaldo Blaauw, before loading him into his car.
Samson then disposed of Bruintjies’s body before he took Blaauw to a remote location, fired several shots at him and left him for dead.
Unknown to him, Blaauw had faked his death, made his way home and reported the night’s events to police.
Samson was acquitted on a charge of murder, but convicted last week of attempted murder, kidnapping and two counts of defeating the ends of justice.
Samson lived on a farm in Louterwater, a remote area near Joubertina. The farm had become dysfunctional, had no electricity and security measures were scant.
He had been the victim of crime several times, including copper theft, theft of produce and vandalism.
Inaction by the police forced him to take his security into his own hands, and in 2017, he legally acquired a firearm for personal defence.
Break-in
During court proceedings, it came to light that on 2 September 2023, Blaauw, Bruintjies and several other men planned to break into Samson’s home, believing it was abandoned.
Armed with knives and a panga, the group of five men approached the house shortly before midnight. Only Blaauw and Bruitjies entered the property.
They were unaware that Samson and an associate identified only as Mouers in court documents, were inside the house. Mouers died due to illness before the start of the trial.
The two occupants woke up and became aware of the intruders and made their way towards the kitchen. Samson confronted Blaauw, threatened to shoot him and ordered him to lie down on the floor. Mouers proceeded to bind Blaauw’s hands with cable ties. Samson said he intended to take any intruders to the police station.
Startled by Bruintjies moving towards him and not knowing how many intruders to expect in the dark farmhouse, Samson fired a single shot.
“Taking all the factors into consideration [...] and the nature of a stressful, fast-moving scene, where armed intruders had gained access to his home, he acted lawfully and defended himself reasonably by firing a single shot towards the body of the deceased,” Judge Govindjee found in his judgment.
Convicted
However, the events that followed gave Govindjee no choice but to convict Samson on the remaining charges.
With his hands bound, Blaauw was forced into Samson’s car while Bruintjies’s body was loaded into the boot. Samson and Mouers drove to a remote location, dumped the deceased’s body, and continued to another location where Blaauw was taken from the car.
Samson fired several shots at Blaauw. Believing he was dead, he and Mouers dragged Blaauw’s body to a ditch and covered him with branches. After Samson and Mouers drove off, Blaauw emerged from his makeshift grave, made his way home and subsequently reported the matter to the police.
The case was postponed until next month when pre-sentencing proceedings are scheduled to get under way.
Approached for comment, Samson’s attorney, advocate Johan van der Spuy, said the judgment spoke for itself and he could not give any comment at this stage of proceedings.
“From the judgment, it is clear this is a very unique and complex set of circumstances. At this stage, any comment would be premature as we await sentencing proceedings,” Van der Spuy said. DM