Hermanus – A Toronto couple hiking in South Africa was stoned, stabbed, tied up with shoelaces and left bleeding in a remote area during a robbery, the couple said Wednesday from their hospital beds.
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On Tuesday, two men robbed Toronto residents Martin Stern, 59, and his wife Janet, 57, of an engagement ring, watches, cellphones and a digital camera.
Martin Stern, a financial consultant, told local reporters they were hiking and passed two men walking in the opposite direction.
“I said good morning, and they nodded,” Mr. Stern said, speaking from his hospital bed at Hermanus Medi-Clinic.
Then the men ran up behind the couple and began an unprovoked attack, he said.
“The next thing we knew we were being stabbed in the back. I was stabbed next to my kidney, and they stabbed Janet in the arm,” Mr. Stern said.
“They pushed us to the ground and picked up rocks.”
Mr. Stern said he and his wife relied on their faith to get through the traumatic attack.
“Janet said to me in Hebrew: ‘We’re going to pray to God,’ and then they left us.”
“I think they were drugged up,” he said. “They were completely senseless — there was no rationale.”
Hospital official Margaret Smith told Canwest News Service that the two are in stable condition.
Police said the Canadians were on a trail in Kleinrivier Mountains, close to the South Africa’s southern coastline, and were found by hikers.
“They were overpowered by two suspects about two hours earlier and left there,” Insp. November Filander told the South African Press Association.
Reports said the pair lost a great deal of blood before they were found. They were airlifted to hospital by a helicopter that had been in the area to retrieve the body of another hiker.
Photos of the couple taken Wednesday in their hospital beds showed a number of injuries visible on Martin Stern, including a heavily bandaged right wrist and a large cut on his nose. Janet Stern was covered in a hospital gown, but showed a bloodied lip in photos taken by the Cape Times and provided to Canwest News Service.
The couple, originally from South Africa but living in the Toronto area since 1986, had taken an early-morning hike up the Fernkloof nature reserve on the mountain, which towers above the seaside holiday town of Hermanus, the Cape Times reported.
A local fire chief, Riaan Jacobs, said the two had lost “quite a lot of blood” and were not able to walk or properly communicate.
“We dropped a medic down who stabilized them on the mountain … they couldn’t move, and were put on to stretchers.
“They were in quite a lot of shock, and in a lot of pain.”
Canadian Consular officials at the High Commission in Pretoria said they were aware of the stabbing of two Canadian citizens in South Africa, but would not be able to provide additional information because of the Privacy Act.
“Consular officials are actively providing consular assistance and support to them,” said Lisa Monette, a spokeswoman for Foreign Affairs and International Trade.
The attack was immediately condemned by local tourism officials, who were worried about negative publicity, with the country prepared to host soccer’s World Cup.
“We must not allow these kinds of attacks or crimes against anybody in our country, specifically because the eyes of the world are on us at the moment, as we are gearing to host one of the biggest events in the world,” Western Cape Tourism MEC Alan Winde told Eye Witness News.
OMG! nice family from TO, know them well. Refuah Sheleima
Poor folks. I wish them a rafuah shleimah min hashamayim. Personally, I would not go wandering around a vacant trail area here in Florida let alone in savage africa. This is why the law was changed that hikers in US federal parks are now allowed to be armed with guns. It’s a simple rationale — to save your family’s life !!! The leftists hate that.
what a nais they didn’t kill them!
I know these ppl. From toronto personally.they are the nicest ppl.
If you’re stupid enough to go hiking in one of the most infamously dangerous countries in the world, you shouldn’t expect better. Jews especially, have no place there.
B”H, they are lucky to be alive, I’m told by former SA residents that over since the natives took over, it became a real jungle with the law of the jungle! rapes, murders, this happens every day there in broad daylight!
if you feel you must go, then go but for heavens sake! hire armed guards…
“specifically because the eyes of the world are on us at the moment, as we are gearing to host one of the biggest events in the world,” So basically if not for the world cup and the eyes of the world they would be totally ok with this?! How low and immoral. This says a lot about the country and its people. Basically they have accepted violent crime as normal but they don’t want to look bad so they condemn it. Makes me want to scream.
I used to go to cam there as a kid, over 30 years ago. What a beautiful place. In the apartheid era back then, it was extremely safe.
The racism expressed in some of the foregoing comments is disgusting (…it was safer during Arpartheid era..etc.) I have been there many times in the past few years and never had a problem.
It is also a big nes that they were FOUND. wow can you imagine?
I have heard from a number of people that is is extremely unsafe to go to South Africa. People there have walls around their homes (estates) and armed security. And it’s still not safe.
If you can afford to travel somewhere far different than North America, then Eretz Yisrael is, of course, beautiful. Otherwise, Mah Rabu Maasecha Hashem; there are many beautiful and scenic places in North America, too.