Stols Kyle

The tragedy unfolded on the afternoon of Sunday, October 22, 2017, at Hatari Big Game Safaris, a private game breeding and safari farm located just outside Jagersfontein in the Xhariep district of the Free State. Twenty-one-year-old Kyle Stols was working as a foreman and game hunter on the property when a security alarm was triggered at one of the guest houses on the farm. A group of four armed intruders had breached the property and were attempting to break into the accommodation. Kyle Stols, who was armed at the time, went to investigate the disturbance and directly confronted the suspects. A violent encounter ensued outside the guest house, and the intruders opened fire on him. Kyle Stols managed to send out an urgent emergency message on a mobile phone group to call for help, notifying others that he had been wounded. He suffered multiple injuries, and a subsequent post-mortem investigation directed by police spokespersons Mosili Ntsika and Thandi Mbambo revealed that he had been shot in the chest, the foot, and sustained a fatal gunshot wound to the head just above his right ear. The attackers fled the scene on foot without stealing anything, leaving his own firearm resting on top of his body. Local farmers, emergency services, and the South African Police Service rushed to the location following his distress signal, but he was declared dead directly at the scene. His death sparked widespread grief and political outcry across the province regarding rural safety. Kyle Stols was buried a few days later following a funeral service at the NG Kerk in Verkeerdevlei, survived by his brother Gawie Stols and his sister Natasha du Plessis.