Smith Charles "Charl"

In the early hours of Friday, October 23, 2009, a violent armed home invasion claimed a young life on a smallholding in Hartebeesfontein, situated just outside Brits in the North West province. The victim was twenty-five-year-old information technology specialist Charl Charles Smith, who lived in Krugersdorp and worked in Lone Hill. Known to his loved ones as a gentle giant who had time for everyone, Charles was visiting the smallholding with his girlfriend, who had recently travelled back to South Africa from her job in London to attend a friend's wedding scheduled for that very Friday. At approximately three o'clock in the morning, a gang of three armed men breached the residence by violently tearing down the front door. Awakened by the sudden commotion, Charles was either shot directly in his bed or while attempting to move out of the bedroom to investigate the intrusion. One of the attackers fired a shot that struck him directly in the stomach. The intruders grabbed a cellphone and a wallet from the bedside stand before fleeing the scene. Emergency measures were immediately taken to save his life, and he was rushed to the nearby medical facility. Tragically, Charles was pronounced dead upon his arrival at the Brits Medi Clinic.