The weapon allegedly used in the murder of a British tourist at Pilgrim’s Rest was found on Friday afternoon, apparently in the suspect’s home, police said.
Mpumalanga police representative Inspector Leonard Hlathi said the pistol was found in the suspect’s home at Bushbuckridge. The man would appear in the Graskop Magistrate’s Court on Monday, Hlathi said.
Diane Conway (59) was killed on Tuesday night when she and her husband Jon (55) were attacked in the grounds of the Royal Hotel in Pilgrim’s Rest.
Investigating officer Superintendent Danie Hall said the man, in his early 20s, was arrested at Bushbuckridge around 11pm on Thursday after police followed up information from the public.
Provincial police commissioner Eric Nkabinde said the man had been positively linked to the attack. Police recovered three of Diane Conway’s credit cards from him too.
The couple were on a 10-day tour of South Africa and were returning to their chalet behind the hotel after supper when they were ambushed. Britain’s Press Association interviewed Mr Conway, who described how he ”tackled” the man, before three shots rang out.
”He shot at me twice — one missed and one went through my neck. He then shot Diane. And that’s what is so tragic about this because he had no reason to hit her,” Conway said from his Nelspruit hospital bed.
He said he ”struggled” with the gunman for a few minutes before the weapon broke free and the man was able to fire and kill his wife. Mr Conway believes he had no alternative but to attack the gunman and added: ”He would have shot us anyway.”
The retired officer, who served in Northern Ireland for 10 years, continued: ”With his face uncovered he would have shot us anyway and I had to make that decision… Whether it was the right or the wrong decision I had to make it and it resulted in tragedy.
”After the third round went off and I was on the floor he left the room and I struggled down to the hotel reception and alerted the front desk to call for an ambulance… I went back to comfort Diane but she wasn’t conscious.”
Mrs Conway was shot through the heart and died at the scene. Mr Conway was taken to the Nelspruit Medi-Clinic. The murder was the first one in the village since the 1871 Gold Rush and the first ever at the Royal Hotel.
Clinic representative Robyn Freathy said on Friday Mr Conway’s condition was improving daily. He was expected to be discharged from the clinic next week.
His children, Justin and Karen, arrived in South Africa on Thursday, to be with their father.
In a final media statement prepared on Conway’s behalf and issued on Friday afternoon, he said: ”This tragedy could have happened anywhere in the world. It hasn’t sunk in yet… It was a beautiful holiday, which ended terribly. All we would like to focus on right now is getting our beloved wife and mother back to our country and lay her to rest.”
”The time has come for closure and we ask the media to allow us space and privacy and time to grieve. We thank the South African people and the community for their kindness and hospitality extended to us.”
Since the attack, about 67 detectives worked around the clock on the case. The incident has been condemned by members of South Africa’s tourism industry, who put together a R50 000 reward for information leading to the attacker’s arrest, in addition to the R50 000 offered by police.
Mpumalanga’s safety and security MEC Thabang Makwetla, congratulated the police team on the arrest. The MEC said the swift policing by the crack team would surely contribute towards making Mpumalanga a safe destination for tourists.
The commitment shown in the investigation of the case sent a clear message to criminals that the police would make their lives unpleasant, he said.
Makwetla also thanked the community for its role in the investigation.
”The co-operation given by our people has been tremendous and very helpful.”
He said the investigating team would aim to build a watertight case ”so that these elements can be confined to prisons”.
Nkabinde also congratulated the police team and thanked the community for their support. He assured the tourism industry that all measures had been taken to ensure that the incident was not repeated. – Sapa