Daily Sun (December 18 2014) - THE BRIDE and groom taking their vows never thought they would soon be running for their lives.
But then their happy wedding was plunged into bloodshed.
A DRUNK DRIVER RAN OVER A GUEST, TWO PEOPLE LANDED UP IN HOSPITAL AND TWO BEHIND BARS.
The chaos involved a fight in a cop shop and gunmen opening fire on the bride's house.
That was the disastrous start to the marriage of Modibedi Motlokao of Heidelberg, Gauteng and Tito Msene of Balfour, Mpumalanga.
Monica Motsoeng (57), the mother of the groom, said she had never seen anything like the chaos at her son's wedding.
"The family is still trying to understand what happened on the day. It hurts us all," she said.
Everything went well at the peaceful wedding service for the well-groomed couple. Then the wedding guests went to the reception in a big tent at the bride's house in Balfour.
Sello's brother-in-law, Sello Sejake (48) of Evaton, Vaal, said: "Everyone was having fun."
That's when a drunk driving a bakkie came from nowhere and ran down a woman guest outside the tent.
"The driver nearly ploughed into the tent," said Sello.
"It angered the people. They chased the man and he was caught about 5km away after crashing into another man's car.
"They put him in the boot of a VW Golf and took him back to the wedding house," said Sello.
Cops came and found the bakkie had been reported stolen and the drunkard didn't have a driving licence.
They escorted the man, still in the Golf's boot, to the cop shop as it was feared wedding guests would beat him up.
The man was arrested on arrival at the police station and charged with drunk and reckless driving.
Sello said that's when things got even worse and he nearly lost an eye.
He said a cop, believed to be a friend of the arrested driver, came to the station and started swearing at his senior officers and the people opening a case.
"The officer threatened to shoot us in the police station. He was rude to everyone, including his station commander," said Sello.
"While waiting for the docket at the charge office, he stabbed me in the eye with a pen in the presence of everyone!
"There was blood everywhere on the floor of the charge office."
The drunk driver and the cop were arrested.
Then while they were at the police station, people in a bakkie arrived at the wedding house.
Shots were fired and the bakkie raced off down kasi streets.
"Everyone left the wedding reception, but it carried on the next day," said Sello.
Daily Sun spoke to Lieutenant Sam Tshabalala of Balfour Police Station, who confirmed the incident. He said he could not talk to the media about the nature of the case, but confirmed that the officer was arrested and will be appearing in court today.
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