Cape Town - A man literally got a taste of death when he was shot in the mouth but lived to tell the tale.
Lady Luck was really on the side of Gregory Willemse, who managed to spit out the bullet that nearly killed him, along with the three “bulletproof” teeth that saved his life.
Willemse “bit the bullet” last Sunday when an unidentified gunman fired three shots at him.
His girlfriend Luzanne Pieters, 24, said they were sitting outside their home in Leeubekkie Street in Blompark, Gansbaai, on Sunday afternoon when two men entered the yard.
“They didn’t talk. The one just pulled out the gun and started shooting,” said Pieters.
She ran for cover when the bullets started flying and it was only when she glanced back in panic that she noticed her boyfriend had been hit and was lying on the ground.
“I thought he was dead. When I went closer I lifted up his head and he spat out blood,” said Pieters.
“He told me he spat out the bullet and it was lying on his pants. If it weren’t for his teeth, he would have been dead.”
She added that the shooter aimed for Willemse’s brain but hit him in the jaw instead because he threw back his head when he saw the gunman taking aim.
Willemse lost three of his teeth, while his jaw was broken in two places from the impact of the shot.
“His neck was also hurt,” added Pieters.
Willemse was rushed to Tygerberg Hospital where he was to undergo an operation to fix his broken jaw.
The motive for the shooting is still unknown but Pieters suspects the men might have been looking for Willemse’s friend who was in a fight with them on the Friday night at a local tavern.
Police spokesperson Constable Noloyiso Rwexana said no arrests have been made yet.
“A case of attempted murder is under investigation,” said Rwexana.
* Anyone with information about the shooting can contact Crime Stop on 08600 10111.
Daily Voice