What Marli Forgot: The van Breda Axe Murders

The van Breda family enjoyed wealth, travel, and the love of friends and family. They travelled together, had apparently enviable relationships, and the children were educated at some of the best schools from around the world. All five family members were living what seemed like a dream life in a high-security, luxury estate just outside Stellenbosch, South Africa. But everything changed for them overnight in late January of 2015.

Join us at the quiet end for What Marli Forgot: The van Breda Axe Murders. The gruesome murders of patriarch Martin, his wife Teresa, and their adult son Rudi shocked South Africa. A bloody axe, identified as coming from the van Breda residence, was recovered at the scene. But there was no indication of forced entry or an outside assailant. Could it have been that a member of the family was responsible for the violence that night? The youngest child, 16-year-old Marli, had no recollection of what happened that night. But her 20-year-old brother, Henri, who remembered details from that night, had a story to tell.

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Sources

As it happened: Henri van Breda pre-trial postponed, News24, 9/9/2016, retrieved 10/19/2024

The De Zalze Murders: The Story Behind the Brutal Axe Attack by Julian Jansen

Henri van Breda guilty of triple axe murders, News24, 5/21/2018, retrieved 10/20/2024

THE HIGH COURT OF SOUTH AFRICA (WESTERN CAPE DIVISION, CAPE TOWN) Case No: SS17/16 THE STATE v HENRI CHRISTO VAN BREDA, retrieved 10/24/2024

The Killer Within: Why Did Henri van Breda Murder His Family? 60 Minutes Australia, 2018, retrieved 10/25/2024 

Murder-Accused van Breda Claims He Saw Axe-Wielding Attacker Kill His Dad, Huffington Post, 4/24/2017, retrieved 10/22/2024

Listen to the emergency call: Henri van Breda call