Western Cape High Court. File picture: Patrick Louw
A R40 million deceased estate is at the centre of litigation after the family of a deceased Noordhoek man contested his last testament and will.
Grantland Bray left his estate to the BoereLegioen RSA (BLC) and BoereLegioen NPC.
BLC is described as “a non-political civil defence movement which is managed by retired members of the South African Police and SA Defence Force” and “gather platoons from the military disciplines into visible public parades with other organisations where recognition is given of the good work done and the role played in the safety of the ‘Boere’ people in towns, cities, and farms in the RSA”.
The family of deceased soldier, Grantland Bray, who at the time of his death in 2022 was a bedridden quadriplegic after sustaining a spinal injury in a motor vehicle accident, contested and sought to revoke the will and testament on grounds that it is vague and contrary to public policy.
Judgment in the matter was recently reserved in the Western Cape High Court.
Bray’s sister and intestate heir, Madelein Gerntholtz, as the first applicant in the litigation and trustee for the Bray Family Trust, in a notice of motion, sought for the will to be declared invalid or to have it devolved by intestate succession.
According to Gerntholtz’s affidavit, leaving an amount of R40 million to BLC “has the effect of promoting and funding unlawful activity in contravention of the Private Security Industry Regulatory Authority (PSiRA)”.
In an extract from the will, Bray made the appointment of the heir to his estate to Pathfinder Bushcraft and Survival Training Camps and any other training offered by the BLC. His assets included his immovable property at De Goede Hoop Estate in Noordhoek, all motor vehicles, all assets in South African banks, shares and Kruger Rands, and assets in Peru.
Also in his will, Bray had left a collective amount of about R625 000 to his carers, which had already been paid to them by the family trust, as set out in the will.
Gerntholtz in her affidavit said BLC, BLC NPC, and Pathfinder “are white supremacist organisations engaged in conduct which is contrary to the rights in the Bill of Rights and/or engaged in conduct which is contrary to the spirit purport and objects in the Bill of Rights”.
According to Gerntholtz, her brother became progressively more isolated since his accident in 1985 and had over the last 10 years of his life “lashed out at family members”.
She also described her brother as “profoundly racist, antisemitic, misogynistic and given to extreme rage” but further averred that she would continue to visit him weekly.
“In the last 10 years of his life, Grant became particularly obsessed with the idea that there was an impeding ‘genocide’ of white people in South Africa. This was no doubt fuelled by his already present racism, coupled with the online content which he viewed obsessively,” Gerntholtz submitted.
Izak van Zyl, director of BoereLegioen RSA and BoereLegioen NPC, in an answering affidavit vehemently denied the averments by Gerntholtz and said that the BLC is currently dormant after being registered as a security provider “but is not functional yet as there are further processes outstanding” to make it PSiRA compliant.
Van Zyl averred that the BLC NPC does “not fit the description of an unworthy heir” and further stated that the submissions made by Gerntholtz were “slanderous, unfounded, and vexatious”.
“The applicants allege that the BLC is a ‘white supremacist organisation’ that blatantly discriminates against non-whites and females. This is a blatant lie. I submit that the only reason for this application by the applicants is to line their own pockets and serve their own selfish greed and nothing more,” Van Zyl submitted.
According to Van Zyl, the BLC only “serves to provide protection and security training and services for communities in need thereof, provide training for farmworkers and supplement security services in conjunction with the police, wherever that may be needed”.
He further said that he found that people “confuse the BoereLegioen with the Boeremag”. He denied that they had any affiliation or connection with the Boeremag or its principles “but instead our name is more focused on Boere being farmers and Afrikaners”.
According to Van Zyl, Bray’s family “did not want anything to do with the deceased prior to his passing and only now wishes to benefit from the estate with the launching of the application for selfish and greedy reasons”.
Cape Times