The battered bodies of a retired married couple were found in a river in a world-famous national park.
Ernst and Dina Marais were found dead in Kruger National Park in South Africa on Friday, May 22, according to the Cape Timesand The Sun.
The couple was last seen two days earlier on Wednesday, May 20, when they left their holiday accommodations for what was supposed to be a day of sightseeing.
Ernst, 71, and Dina, 73, were from Mossel Bay on the country’s southern coast, per the Cape Times.
It is believed that the couple was stabbed and that their hands were bound behind their backs, per The Sun.
“It was hoped that they had gone off road and [that their vehicle had] broken down after heavy local floods somewhere, but then we got a call to say two bodies had been found,” a Kruger National Park source said, per the outlet.
“Both had been stabbed in what was clearly a very brutal attack and had been thrown into the river, no doubt for the crocs, and their 4 x 4 had been stolen, so this is a very major incident for us,” the source added.
According to The Sun, an anonymous source within the South African police said investigators suspect that the couple may have encountered a group of poachers and were killed to prevent them from speaking out.
The source added, “Their pickup truck would have been an easy way to transport anything they were carrying if they were smugglers, and there are unfenced ways to get across the river into Mozambique.”
One of the couple’s neighbors told the outlet that police had been to their residence in Mossel Bay in the hopes that Ernst and Dina had simply returned home, but the house was empty.
“They were a lovely couple who loved going on safari, and the residents are all in shock,” the neighbor said, per The Sun.
South African National Parks (SANParks) confirmed “with shock and sadness” that two bodies were discovered in the Pafuri section of the park in a media release published on Saturday, May 23.
SANParks added that a full search operation had been launched “after camp staff noticed the tourists had not returned to camp.”
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The park service said the bodies were ultimately found “near a river” by other tourists in what was described as a “gruesome discovery.”
SANParks additionally confirmed that the couple’s vehicle is missing.
“It is the first time in the history of the Kruger National Park that an incident of this nature has been reported,” Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment Willie Aucamp said, per the release, adding that the victims’ next of kin have been informed.
Aucamp added that police are currently investigating the incident.
The South African Police Service did not immediately return PEOPLE’s request for comment.
Two men and a woman were stabbed to death in what the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office said is believed “to be an isolated domestic incident.”
In the case Thursday, May 28, officers were called about 3:45 a.m. to a home in the 1400 block of Exodus Way off Lenox Avenue near Fouraker Road for a stabbing. The Sheriff’s Office said a man was suffering from a potential stab wound and was taken to a hospital by rescue personnel but died.
While canvassing the area, officers found the two others dead at a nearby home, the Sheriff’s Office said.
Times-Union news partner First Coast News reported that investigators said the first man, in his 40s, tried to run to a neighbor’s for help, which prompted the call to 911. The man found in the house at the crime scene was in his 30s, and the woman was in her 20s.
The Sheriff’s Office did not say if it was a murder-suicide, but if it is ruled one, it would be the fifth in a month and a half in Baker, Clay and Duval counties, according to Times-Union records. Last year there were four total, including one in Nassau County.
The homicides become the 35th this year in Jacksonville compared to 45 at this time last year, according to Times-Union records.
Murder-suicides in Jacksonville area
Following are brief summaries from authorities of the other murder-suicides in the Jacksonville area this year.
1. April 18: Ashtin Durham, 34, and girlfriend Jessica Valentin-Rivera, 36, were found dead from gunshot wounds in a Clay County apartment complex on County Road 220 after deputies received a concerning message from the man. Durham and Valentin-Rivera both had children, but none in common and they were not present at the time of the shooting. Durham was the apparent shooter. Court records didn’t show a domestic violence history, but friends indicated he was abusive to her.
2. May 3: Husband and wife Christopher and Anissa Osbourne, 51 and 56, respectively, were found shot to death at the Ocean Pond Campground in the Osceola National Forest in Olustee, Baker Couty. Deputies responded to conduct a well-being check after a report that the camp hosts were unable to be contacted throughout the weekend. It’s being investigated as a murder-suicide by the husband, but the circumstances weren’t clear. They didn’t seem to have domestic issues the family was aware of.
3. May 6: Husband and wife Lloyd Ernest Dahlen III, 52, Heather Anne Dahlen, 49, were found dead ― her neck cut and him shot ― after officers responded to a battery call at their Crossview Drive home in Jacksonville. The husband was the suspect. The wife was seeking a divorce after years of abuse and had filed an injunction for protection a day before her death, but it wasn’t served in time. They were found side by side in a pool of blood, and a witness saw him on top of her with his hands on her neck before running out to call police and then hearing a bang. A knife was beside her and a rifle beside him.
4. May 9: A husband and wife ― Gennie Mae Jackson, 64, and Elton Evin Jackson, 71 ― were found dead in their Sherman Hills Parkway home in Jacksonville after a neighbor was concerned because there garage door was left open all day and no one answered their front door or phones. They had nothing but traffic tickets in court records, so this may have been health-related.
(This story has been updated with additional information.)
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Three people were stabbed to death in a Jacksonville domestic incident
An elephant in world famous Kruger National Park in South Africa was captured in video Friday walking calmly toward a safari vehicle before doing the unexpected.
The elephant destroyed the vehicle, pushing it sideways before spearing the engine area with one of its tusks.
The guide from South Post at Kruger remained calm throughout the encounter and handled it professionally but misread the situation, not recognizing the animal was in musth.
“After speaking to several senior guides with more than 30 years of experience, everyone agreed that this bull elephant showed no warning signs of aggression,” South Post at Kruger wrote on its Instagram post. “Normally, elephants will display clear signals when they are uncomfortable and want space, but in this case the bull appeared calm as he slowly walked down the road past the vehicle before suddenly reacting.”
There are plenty of recent examples of an aggressive, in-the-musth elephant becoming out of control. Even an old example from over 150 years ago.
In March 1869, a bull circus elephant named Hercules became enraged during the musth, broke free of its chains, and charged and derailed a freight train, losing one of its tusks in the process.
The musth explained
In a healthy adult bull elephant, musth involves a rise in the reproductive hormones in the elephant’s body and causes the pachyderm to become more restless, energetic, aggressive and/or unpredictable, according to Wildlife SOS, an organization that aims to save abused captive elephants.
An elephant in musth becomes irritable and oversensitive to sounds and movements, and it is a natural phenomenon in adult bull elephants.
File this encounter under unpredictable behavior.
“This was a very unfortunate situation, but thankfully nobody was injured and not even a scratch was left on anyone,” South Post at Kruger wrote on Instagram. “We are sharing this video so that others can learn from it and better understand the reality of working in wild spaces. Nature can change in a split second, no matter how experienced you are.
“As a company, we take enormous pride in the way we operate. We are passionate about wildlife and conservation, and we have the utmost respect for every animal we encounter. Incidents like this remind all of us that these animals are wild, powerful, and should never be underestimated.
“We hope this serves as a valuable learning experience for guides, guests, and anyone spending time in the bush.”
David Strege is an award-winning journalist who spent most his career as a sportswriter at the Los Angeles Times and Orange County Register before evolving into an outdoors writer. He joined Yahoo! Sports as a copy editor prior to providing outdoor-related blogs for a company associated with Yahoo! He is currently doing the same for USA Today.
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