Bernadino Heights High School has moved to support the two survivors of an apparent family murder-suicide.
Principal Henry Alexander said Yacoob Arrison,14, was already back at school on Monday January 16, two days after his mother allegedly shot him, his twin brother Yusuf, and their elder brother, Waseem, 21, before turning the gun on herself.
Waseem died and Yacoob was critically injured. Yusuf was shot in the hand.
“Under the circumstances, he is an extremely brave and courageous child and he wanted to be back at school and among his friends,” Mr Alexander said.
The school, which is in Scottsdene, Kraaifontein, had arranged counselling for him, Mr Alexander said.
Darren Francis of the Western Cape Department of Health said Yacoob had been released into the care of family while his twin, Yusuf, is still at Tygerberg Hospital.
“At the moment, only his family are allowed to see him,” Mr Alexander said of Yusuf. “We will put plans in place for when he is recovered because the learners want to support the family.”
Other media reports said Aneesa Arrison, 43, a widow who lost her husband to cancer two years ago, shot Waseem in the head before shooting the twins on Saturday January 14.
Yacoob was discharged from hospital on Sunday January 15.
A report in the Daily Voice said Yacoob had carried his bleeding twin to a family friend’s home 200m away. According to the Cape Argus, Yacoob, told the friend he didn’t know who the shooter was.
ER24’s Russel Meiring said: “Paramedics found that one child, 14, lay in the living room with a gunshot wound to his head and was in a critical condition. A second child, 14, was found in one of the bedrooms with a gunshot wound to his hand and arm.”
The statement went on to say that while ER24 paramedics treated the twins, Metro services responded to another incident in the adjoining road, which was where Waseem and Aneesa’s bodies were found.
Relative Nazeem Layloo, said none of the rumours surrounding the incident had been confirmed by police and he appealed for sensitivity while the investigation continued.
“We are waiting for police to come back with ballistics. We have no confirmation at the moment of exactly what happened,” he said.
Police spokesperson FC van Wyk said murder, attempted murder and inquest cases were registered for investigation.
Social media was awash with messages of condolences and support.
Layla Riffel, who appears to be a family friend, said in a message to Aneesa: “You were one of the nicest people that I knew.”
According to Ms Riffel’s post, Aneesa was well-known for her milk tart recipe. She wrote: “No one could make it (milk tart) better than you. We missed our last date, we would have made a custard tart. My heart is so sore, I can’t stop the tears.”
Commenting on Ms Riffel’s post, Bibi Lakay said: “Words cannot explain how heartsore I am. Auntie Aneesa was one of the most loving women I knew.”
Ms Lakay said she had known Waseem from when they attended madrassa and school together.
“He was the most loving, kind gentleman that I know,” she said.
