The weekend began with hope. Nicky van Heerden, a vibrant 54-year-old former detective, was “over the moon” about a new man in her life. So much so, that on Saturday she introduced him to her family for the first time. By Sunday night, that hope was extinguished. Van Heerden’s body was found sprawled on a sand dune in Plettenberg Bay’s Rivertides area, next to a bakkie belonging to the very same man, who now sits in a police cell accused of her murder.
Police spokesperson Sergeant Wesley Twigg said officers responded to reports of a woman screaming near the Keurbooms River around 9:30 pm. They discovered Van Heerden with severe injuries beside the vehicle. She was declared dead at the scene. A 53-year-old man was arrested shortly after, and is awaiting formal charges in the Plettenberg Bay Magistrates’ Court.
A Life Lived Boldly, Extinguished Brutally
For her grieving family, the sudden violence is incomprehensible. “We are still in shock,” said her brother-in-law and family spokesperson, Hein Bruwer. He described Van Heerdenwhose given name was Annekeas adventurous, outdoorsy, and fearless. “She lived boldly and was not afraid of anything,” he said. A former detective in Plett who later worked as a logistics manager in Angola, she had been excited for the year ahead, planning travels and new memories.
“She loved walking on the beach, making memories,” Bruwer said, his voice heavy with loss. “We loved her very much, and quite frankly, we still do and always will.”
A Suspect Described as “Unpredictable and Erratic”
The man now in custody had recently moved to Plettenberg Bay from Wilderness. While the family had only just met him, others who knew him offered a chilling portrait. One acquaintance, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal, described him as “unpredictable and very erratic,” alleging a tendency to “snap at people for hardly any reason.” The source claimed to have heard stories of the man “harming women in the past,” adding, “I actually feel very angry about it because people like him were walking around freely.”
A Father’s Unimaginable Task
The tragedy leaves Van Heerden’s 87-year-old father to face the grim tasks of burying his daughter and, eventually, confronting her alleged killer in court. A cremation service has been planned for Monday.
What began as a weekend of introductions and new beginnings has ended in a horror that has shattered a family and shaken the quiet coastal community. The investigation continues, but for those who loved Nicky van Heerden, the only answer that matters now is one the justice system must provide.
