Cape Town police are investigating a case of attempted murder and robbery after an American tourist was robbed and shot in the face.
According to a report in News24, the man landed at Cape Town International Airport on Friday afternoon, exchanged some foreign currency, rented a car, and then mistakenly ended up in Nyanga where he was shot in his car and robbed of his belongings.
He was set to visit friends in Simon’s Town and Hermanus, but was apparently misdirected by the maps/GPS application on his iPhone.
Cape Town Police details what happened:
Be advised that the incident happened on Friday, 2023-11-03 at about 15:00 in Nyanga area. The circumstances surrounding the incident are under investigation. Motive is robbery. He was robbed of his personal belongings, documents and clothing. A case of attempted murder and robbery with a firearm was registered at Mowbray (he was transferred to a medical facility which falls under Mowbray Police Precinct) , and will be transferred to Nyanga for further investigation. No arrest as yet investigation continues. Further investigation will be by the Provincial Detectives Serious and Violent Crimes.
Police have also urged anyone with any information about this incident to contact Crime Stop on 08600 10111.
The Daily Mail reports that the 55 year old tourist, has been identified as Walter Fischel, and got his teeth blasted out after being shot in the face.
Fischel is currently recovering post-surgery, and told News24 that he is leaving the country as soon as he recovers.
He was due to spend at least two weeks here.
It comes as local tourism authorities predict a bumper tourism season.
The MEC of Finance and Economic Opportunities Mireille Wenger expressed her concern:
“Tourism contributes significantly to our provincial economy and job creation which is why every tourist is precious, and we are appalled by this violent attack. We are working closely with City law enforcement, car hire companies and role-players responsible for the routes near the airport. We take safety of residents and visitors in the province very seriously, and have mobilised one of the biggest safety campaigns. As we prepare for a busy summer season, we will continue to work hard and allocate resources to keep people in the province safe.”
Fischel spoke to News24 from his hospital bed, saying he didn’t realise that the route he was directed onto – would go through what is locally known as one of the most dangerous places in the country – Nyanga.
‘I landed at the airport in Cape Town, from Thailand, at about two o’clock, went outside, got to AVIS, got my car, told them where I’m going, put the address in the GPS after I got in the vehicle and inspected it.
‘[I] picked the route – the shortest distance – which was not the highway, because the highway apparently had traffic.’
‘[That] routed me through Nyanga. The neighborhood was not the greatest, [and] traffic started getting a little tight.
‘Taxis were, you know, polling for position,’ he added.
He says the road became very full, and he was forced to a stop.
Almost immediately he says four men swarmed his car, and – as he put it – ‘I got shot in the face’ and he was robbed of all his belongings.
Watch the video below of the tourist detailing his harrowing ordeal:
In August, a respected 40-year-old British trauma and orthopaedic doctor was shot and killed after apparently taking the wrong turn into Nyanga, also arriving in Cape Town for holiday.
Kar Hao Teoh was with his wife Sara and two-year-old son when he was fatally shot. This amid the violent taxi strike.
