Fashion designer found murdered
Body discovered in basement of house
THE puzzling murder of a Port Elizabeth fashion designer has left friends and neighbours searching for answers. The body of Ralton Rademeyer, 54, was found by his partner, Mario Behr, in the basement of their Olive Street, North End, home on Wednesday morning.
Rademeyer was known across the Eastern Cape for designing matric-dance dresses and ballroom dancing gowns.
Police said the details were still sketchy but a botched robbery had not been ruled out.
Rademeyer was found bound and gagged with masking tape.
Neighbours, who did not want to be named, said they were shocked by the murder.
Rademeyer’s best friend, Oliver Erasmus, who owns Cheers Revue Bar in Harrower Road, said their friends were devastated.
“The whole scenario is very bizarre and we want answers,” Erasmus said.
“There appears to be nothing missing from the house and the only thing stolen was the car.
“I became suspicious that something was wrong on Tuesday morning, when I sent him messages and they did not go through.
“It is very unlike him not to respond. We have messaged every single morning for years.
“After he failed to respond by 2pm, I went to his house to see if he was there.
“His mom was there at the time, but she said she had not seen him so I left.”
On Wednesday, Erasmus woke to the news that Rademeyer had been murdered.
“I went straight there and spoke to Mario, who was in shock,” he said.
“According to Mario, he last saw him on Tuesday morning when Ralton dropped him off at work.
“It is very bizarre as he [Rademeyer] usually picks Mario up from work as well.
“Why the alarm was not raised and a search done when he did not collect him on Tuesday evening, I do not know.”
Erasmus said Rademeyer’s body had been found on a mattress in the basement.
“On Wednesday morning, Mario let the dogs out and after a while went to investigate why they were barking at the door of the cellar.
“It was then when the body was found.
“There were only two drops of blood on the floor.
“His mouth was also taped shut with masking tape,” he said.
Police spokesman Captain Johan Rheeder said details remained sketchy and the motive was still unknown.
“Detectives are following up several leads to locate the vehicle [a white Corsa, registration number DTG 511EC] that was stolen during the incident,” Rheeder said.
“It appears that nothing else was stolen.
“The exact time the incident took place is unknown and evidence of blunt-force trauma to the head is evident.
“We are awaiting the postmortem results to determine the exact cause of death.”