Lieschen Botes’ family tragedy
A tragic misunderstanding led to Lieschen Botes losing both her parents-in-law on the same day
SHE was once affectionately known as South Africa’s “Wonderwoman”. In her role as the Wonderbra girl, Lieschen Botes became one of the country’s most recognisable citizens, gracing billboards and magazine covers.
Then seven years ago, at age 26, she decided to give it all up for a quiet life in the Free State mining city of Welkom as a full-time homemaker, wife and mother to her five young children.
But the former supermodel’s name popped up in the media again recently – this time for tragic reasons. A disastrous chain of events saw her losing not just one but two close family members on the same day.
And all because of a heartbreaking misunderstanding.
Early in the morning of 19 November her mother-in-law, Goretti Vieira, suffered a fatal heart attack. When her husband, Joào, discovered her lifeless body in their bed, he jumped to the conclusion she’d taken her own life.
Devastated at the thought of life without her, Joào fetched a gun and killed himself.
Lieschen (33) and Rogerio (38) are still struggling to make sense of what happened.
“They were my husband’s mom and dad, my children’s grandparents. It’s hard,” Lieschen says, rocking one of her twins in her arms.
Joào (68) – or Joe as he was known – and Goretti (64) also played a vital role in her life, especially after her dad, Kobus (60), died of cancer last year.
“I feel I’ve lost my own parents,” she says. “Roger’s parents were my parents. We share a life.”
Now they’re both gone.
ROGERIO and Lieschen got to know each other in 2011 when her mom, Linda, moved closer to the Spar supermarket the Vieira family owns in Welkom. Lieschen, who’d been born and raised in Welkom, was living in Cape Town and modelling in Europe. But after a whirlwind romance, she quit and married Rogerio on a boat on the Sea of Galilee in Israel in 2012.
“It was a huge decision but I’d had enough of being on my own,” she says.
The Vieiras welcomed her into their family with open arms.
“My father-in-law built our home,” Lieschen says of their large face-brick home 200m from her in-laws.
After the birth of Xavio (now 6), they had another son, Xilvé (4), followed by a daughter, Leila (2), then twins Seichelle and Seigio, who are now four months old. Throughout the ups and downs of
motherhood, it was a comfort to know she could count on her in-laws.
“Goretti was a second mother to me. Joe would often call and offer to do a school run with the eldest three.”
“Things were in a comfortable rhythm,” Rogerio adds.
After joining the family business 11 years ago he’d gained even more respect for his father. “He was such a hard-working man,” he says.
Rogerio shakes his head as he starts recounting the last few months of his parents’ life.
“There’d been many changes in the past two years, including changes to our business model and extensive renovations to the shop. There was a lot of pressure. Everything my dad did, he did with precision – my mom couldn’t always handle that.
“They argued, just like any married couple. But when they were together, they were at their happiest.”
His father was unhappy when the body corporate of the complex where the family lived suddenly changed the gardener’s schedule. There was an altercation a week before his death and “there were rumours they’d be charging my dad”, Rogerio says.
The stress of it all took a toll on Goretti, who went to see a heart specialist. Rogerio believes his mom woke up in the early hours of 19 November while her husband was fast asleep.
“I think my mom was convinced she was having a panic attack. Her pills were found scattered all over the kitchen counter as she’d grabbed her sedatives.”
The autopsy report, which YOU has seen, was released soon after her death and proved she’d had a heart attack. The five tablets in her stomach hadn’t even been absorbed into her bloodstream.
But when Joe woke up and discovered his wife dead he didn’t know this. Seeing the pills, he believed she’d taken her own life. He called his son at around 8am, hysterical. Rogerio was at work at the time.
Lieschen was at home preparing to take the twins for their vaccinations. She’d been unwell and kept postponing the shots and was already four weeks behind schedule.
When Rogerio arrived at his parents’ home he found his father still fruitlessly trying to give Goretti mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.
Joe then went outside to scream at the neighbour, Johan Kriek (74) – he believed the stress of the situation with the complex had pushed his wife over the edge. He was so worked up he tried punching Johan, narrowly missing his jaw.
Realising his dad was emotionally unstable, Rogerio left his father with the complex security staff and took his gun to lock it away in the shop safe. When the ambulance services arrived, he left Joe in their care and accompanied his wife and twins to Kroonstad for the vaccinations.
“I knew if I told Lieschen my mom was gone, she wouldn’t want to go anymore. I’d already lost my mom, I didn’t want to lose one of my children too.”
“He told me just as we were outside town,” Lieschen says. “It was terrible.”
The couple returned at around 11am. By this time other family members were at their parents’ house. Most were in shock and crying.
There were police officers everywhere. Rogerio assumed they’d been called because Goretti was dead. But when he tried to go to his dad the police stopped him.
It was only when his uncle Adelino came up to hug him that he found out his dad was dead too.
When his sister, Jacqueline Sousa (43) from Klerksdorp, arrived on the scene with her husband, Roberto and children, Delita (17) and Romero (16), she collapsed upon hearing the tragic news.
NOT long before Rogerio and Lieschen arrived, Joe had gone into the study where Goretti’s .38 Special revolver was hidden. Kneeling, he shot himself under the chin. Adelino, Goretti’s brother, found him.
“I think if I’d been here he wouldn’t have done it,” Rogerio says. “But I don’t blame myself. I think God removed me from the situation.”
Lieschen says Rogerio was inconsolable. “I asked him, ‘What can I do for you?’ He said, ‘Just be a mom to our children’.” And that’s what she’s trying to do. “Our six-year-old definitely knows something’s wrong. The younger two don’t understand but I know they sense it. I’m trying to keep things as normal as possible.”
But as we walk through her in-laws’ neat home, everything in its place as they left it, Lieschen says she knows nothing will ever be normal again.