Three arrested after farm torture; White House vigil planned with 3,000 crosses
Three suspects were taken into custody after a farm victim was found hog-tied, beaten and stabbed, and activists are organizing a 3,000-cross vigil outside the White House.
After a tip about criminal activity near Pretoria, private armed group ECHO-1 Tactical Solutions intercepted a vehicle linked to a suspected gang and later stopped it in Welbekend, detaining three suspects who were then transferred to South African police. Responders found the victim bound to a bed, bleeding heavily, with multiple stab wounds and severe facial injuries, and were able to stabilize the individual as family members arrived.
AfriForum’s chief spokesperson Jacques Broodryk confirmed the arrests, the seizure of stolen goods, and that one suspect remains at large after taking the victim’s pickup truck. In the United States, activists plan to lay 3,000 white crosses from the White House to the Capitol on Sept. 26 to draw attention to farm attacks in South Africa. The vigil follows a February 2025 executive order signed by Donald Trump that ended U.S. aid to South Africa and allowed Afrikaner refugees to enter the United States, citing policies that they say target white landowners.
Why it matters
The arrests highlight ongoing farm violence in South Africa and the international campaign to raise awareness of the issue.
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