Justice for face-off skollie: Kensington ou sentenced to 18 years for shooting his pal
|Published
JAILED: Alex van Wyk was sentenced.
A Kensington skollie, who shot his friend in the face with a shotgun, has been sentenced to 18 years in the mang after being found guilty at the Cape Town Regional Court.
Alex van Wyk was jailed last week after his victim made a miraculous recovery and lived to tell the tale.
The shooting which happened in January 2020 set tongues wagging on social media when Lorenzo Pietersen, 19, “rose up from the dead” and spoke to cops after being left in a ditch to die.
At the time, detectives from the Anti-Gang Unit had conducted raids in the area amid rumours that two teens were spotted with a shotgun.
After busting Lorenzo’s friends with the firearm, officers went to a veldjie in 18th Avenue as residents claimed someone had been shot and left there the night before.
Cops found Lorenzo lying in the ditch and as they called paramedics to the scene to declare him dead, the teen sat straight up.
Officers got a moerse skrik as Lorenzo spoke while pieces of flesh hung from his face.
He was rushed to Groote Schuur Hospital where he underwent 16 surgeries to reconstruct his face.
Large teams of specialists inserted plates in his head as his skull was damaged, and reconstructed his nose, jaw and palate.
Unfortunately, the ordeal left Lorenzo blind.
Determined to get his life back, Lorenzo enrolled at the Athlone School of the Blind and is currently training as a Peace Ambassador.
He later took the stand to describe the impact on his life after Van Wyk, a member of the Wonder Kids gang, pleaded guilty to the shooting.
The case was investigated by AGU detective Sergeant Camilla Jones and saw Van Wyk face a plethora of charges including two counts of attempted murder, two counts of the illegal possession of two firearms and ammunition and a charge of reckless endangerment.
According to court documents Van Wyk pleaded guilty to all charges and was sentenced to just over 20 years imprisonment.
As some of the sentences will run concurrently, he will serve an effective 18 years behind bars. He was also declared unfit to possess a firearm.
Lorenzo’s family could not be reached for comment.