Johannesburg - After more than two weeks on life support, one of the owners of Newtown restaurant Gramadoelas has died from injuries he sustained during a brutal home invasion.
Returning home last month in the early morning, Brian Shalkof and his partner Eduan Naudé were followed into their edge-of-Hillbrow apartment by a group of four armed men.
An emotional Naudé told The Star it had seemed the group had a vendetta against Shalkof because, besides being pushed out of the way, Naudé was left mostly unharmed.
Three of the men kicked Shalkof, who screamed for help, while another pointed his firearm at Shalkof.
It was after Shalkof stopped moving that the men fled the flat, taking the couple’s laptops, cellphones and some cash.
Emergency services were called immediately and Shalkof was taken to the intensive care unit at Milpark Hospital.
Naudé says Shalkof sustained numerous injuries, internal and external, and was placed on life support.
On Monday, Naudé and Shalkof’s family were told that there was no longer any hope of recovery.
Shalkof was taken off life support around 6pm and the 65-year-old was declared dead shortly after.
“We had a wonderful relationship, business and otherwise… ” said Naudé, who was too distraught to continue.
Shalkof and Naudé had been business partners and lovers for 45 years, and ran Gramadoelas – a traditional South African restaurant connected to the Market Theatre – since its inception in 1967.
The restaurant has seen dozens of famous guests over the years, including Queen Elizabeth II, Charlize Theron and Bill Clinton.
A criminal case has been opened with the police. No one has been arrested.
Naudé told The Star that Shalkof had been verbally threatened in the recent past and that the couple had contacted the police, but because no violent crime had been committed, the police were unable to do anything about the threats.
The man allegedly responsible for the threats was a worker contracted to work on the couple’s restaurant at its previous location, and Naudé said verbal threats became SMSes recently, including one he remembers that simply said “I’ll get you”.
Investigators have been unavailable for comment.
It’s unclear if they believe the threats are linked to the attack.
A friend, who asked not to be identified, said Shalkof’s death was a loss to the restaurant community, and that few men had established such iconic and long-lasting eateries.
Shalkof’s family confirmed there would be a private cremation service for family and friends, and said a public memorial service would be decided upon later.
The Star