Johannesburg - ‘WTF IS HAPPENING TO OUR BEAUTIFUL COUNTRY?!?” model Lee-Ann Liebenberg tweeted after she was robbed as she, her husband and two young children returned from celebrating their daughter’s first birthday on Tuesday.
Liebenberg announced to her nearly 52 000 followers on Twitter that three armed men had held up her, her husband Nicky van der Walt, Gia, 4, and Gabriella.
The family arrived at their home after lunch at a Hyde Park shopping centre restaurant.
The men, driving a white Mercedes Benz, allegedly followed the family home and cornered them on their driveway.
The gunmen then pointed firearms at them and made off with an undisclosed amount of money and other valuables.
Liebenberg tweeted: “Family lunch celebrating my baby’s birthday could’ve ended so badly today. All glory to GOD. We’re all ok. Shaken and stirred but GRATEFUL.”
After the robbery, the family’s home was plunged into darkness due to Eskom’s nationwide power cuts.
Liebenberg then tweeted her dissatisfaction at the country’s alarming crime rate and electricity crisis: “Armed robbery & attempted hijacking, guns pointed at my BABIES… And now load shedding. WTF IS HAPPENING TO OUR BEAUTIFUL COUNTRY?!?”
She then posted a heart-warming picture on Instagram of her husband and Gabriella exchanging smiles.
The picture was captioned: “After our disgusting distressful horrible ordeal of being held up today at gunpoint AND MORE IMPORTANTLY GUNS POINTED AT our beautiful innocent children… WE’RE CELEBRATING THAT WE’RE ALIVE! CELEBRATING WITH LOAD SHEDDING… WTF more?!? I’m trying SO hard to be patriotic BUT… Thank you GOD for sparing us #WeSurvivedAnotherDayInAfrica.”
Husband Van der Walt was hijacked in their driveway in 2011.
Liebenberg’s legions of Twitter fans were at her side, showing their support for her and her family.
Paul Kaufmann wrote: “I am so sorry for you. Today has been shameful for our country. I wish I could change everything myself. Vasbyt.”
Mohamed Jogee wrote: “Hope you and your family are fine with the help of the (Almighty). This is a terrible ordeal and hope they catch the robbers.”
But others urged the model and the family to leave the country as they believed there was no lasting solution to the crime problems.
Gauteng police spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Lungelo Dlamini told The Star on Wednesday morning that he was aware of the incident but was unable to find the case number.
He was uncertain whether Liebenberg had reported the matter.
The model and her publicist Thulane Hadebe could not be reached for comment.
The Star