One of the South African lawyers who was known for defending top criminal gangs in courts has been shot dead by unknown thugs while dropping his child at school this morning, Tuesday, 30th October.
Pete Mihalik‚ 50‚ was killed in what witnesses described as an execution outside Reddam House Atlantic Seaboard in Green Point.
It is understood that Mihalik’s eight-year-old son was injured in the shooting. His daughter was unhurt. Mihalik’s wife committed suicide several years ago.
Sources told TimesLive that Mihalik had bodyguards but “the shooter went up to the car window and just killed him”. Paramedics arrived on the scene but were unable to save him.
There was a single bullet hole in the driver’s door window of Mihalik’s Mercedes-Benz AMG. After the shooting it remained in the street with both nearside passenger doors open.
An eyewitness said he heard two gunshots and saw a silver-grey vehicle with GP number plates speed away from the scene.
“One man was in the vehicle as the other came running back. He got in as the car screeched away from the scene‚” said the man‚ who did not want to be named.
Police were at the school and pupils were being escorted out.
The lawyer was known for having connections with a number of people who were in gang related activities including, Noorudien Hassan‚ with whom Mihalik worked on a number of gang-related matters and was gunned down outside his Lansdowne home in November 2016.
He had also been representing Jason Rohde, a Johannesburg businessman accused of murdering his wife, Susan Rohde.
As if that is not enough, before his death, Mihalik was representing another gang member named Ralph Stanfield who was arrested this month after cops raided his garage in Bishop Lavis and found several stolen cars.
He has also been embroiled in firearm and murder cases.
