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Helicopters, police cars, crime scene tape, dozens of bewildered bystanders -- and a man who was allegedly holding people hostage and firing shots from his roof.
Johan Delport lives just seven houses down the street from where Danie Small shot and killed three people yesterday.
Read more: Shots fired in hostage situation on Pretoria estate
One of the victims was Edward Gobey, the complex’s security manager. Danie was later found dead in the house. It has not yet been determined whether or not he killed himself.
Johan says that Danie’s house is in the corner of the complex which is east or Pretoria.
“When I got home there was a police helicopter circling my house. It was so close we could see the eyes of the policeman hanging out of the window of the helicopter,” says Johan.
“I thought that a robbery had taken place somewhere.”
“One of the men who was standing outside lived in the complex just opposite the man’s house. The people who lived in this complex couldn’t go home,” says Johan.
Read more: Pretoria woman whose husband was shot in front of her gives birth to healthy baby boy
“The man told me that this guy (Danie) was very difficult. He previously killed one guy’s dog and another guy’s cat. He has threatened to beat people up. There were people in the complex that made assault cases against him. According to this guy Danie was a very troublesome person.”
“He told me that if a shooting were to break out it could get very serious because this guy is ex-military.”
“I spoke to another guy whose brother was in the complex in their house. He was in matric and was studying in the house. He lives opposite Danie. This matric student had told his brother over the phone that police had come knocking and told everyone to stay inside their homes and lay low.”
“They were too close to the incident. Police couldn’t even take a chance to let them evacuate their homes because this man might shoot someone who was walking in the road.”
At one point police asked onlookers to move around there corner because “it is highly likely that something will happen,” said the police officer.
By 7.30 pm two policeman and three security guards from the Brinant security company, who were trapped on Danie’s property, were freed. By 10 pm the taskforce entered his home and found him dead.
