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Bezuidenhout , Coenraad Jacobus (C J)

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Photo of Bezuidenhout Photo of Bezuidenhout
Identity
Person No.
29430
Old ROH no.
87
Service No.
74341090BT
Last Name
Bezuidenhout 72
First Name
Coenraad Jacobus
Initials
C J
Date of Birth
Unknown
Est. Birth Year
1959 (±1 yr) 446
Age at Death
24
Death Record
Date of Death
23 May 1983 102
Cause code
ACC 1,595
Accident
Cause of Death
Died in an accidental explosion 4
Died in an accidental explosion. While traveling in a Buffel on the Oshakati-Oshikuku road, an RPG7 was accidentally detonated in the vehicle, killing him instantly
Military Service
Branch
Army
Rank
Rifleman
Regiment
Regiment De la Rey 20
Corps
South African Infantry Corps 10,347
Unit
Unknown
Secondary Unit
2nd Battalion
Defence Force
SADF 3,874
South African Defence Force
Location
Country
South Africa 23,879
Locality
Gauteng 9,374
Cemetery
CARLETONVILLE (WEST WITS) CEMETERY 14
Grave Reference
D6 1
Unit History
Role at time of death
Infantry, later Mechanised Infantry
Status
Active Citizen Force (Reserve)
Part of
82 Mechanised Brigade
Regiment de la Rey, established 1934 as one of the new Afrikaans-language Citizen Force units of the Union Defence Force. Renamed General de la Rey Regiment; one of only six mechanised units in the SANDF Reserve Force as of the post-1994 period.
Notes

Husband of Mrs. M. Bezuidenhout, of Carletonville.

Research notes

Col (rt) Graham du Toit Last Post 23 May 2024: 74341090BT Rifleman Coenraad Jacobus Bezuidenhout, Regiment De La Rey, killed instantly when a Soviet PG-7 anti-tank rocket was accidentally detonated inside their Buffel Troop Carrier on the Oshakati-Oshikuku road, age 24. ROH already had Buffel / RPG7 accidental detonation; Oshikulo corrected to Oshikuku (place name). RPG7 vs Graham PG-7 not overwritten.
4 Sep 2026: Unit leftover "Regiment De la Rey" (a named regiment, not a sub-unit) moved to Regiment. Corps unchanged.
14 Sep 2026: Pro Patria Medal added -- database-wide sweep for SADF Border War operational-area deaths within the medal's gazetted window (25 Jun 1976 - 27 Apr 2003), per the warrant's died-before-qualifying-period provision. See PersonAward.Citation for the gazette references.
14 Sep 2026: Pro Patria Medal added earlier today REVERTED -- John obtained the actual Government Gazette (GG 5171/5575); the "died before completing the qualifying period" provision relied on does not exist in the primary text (it was a secondary-source claim). Actual Rule 5 requires (a) combat/enemy-caused incident, (b) a Ministerially-acknowledged operation (clasp), or (c) 55+ continuous/90+ non-continuous days in an operational area -- none of which this record's cause of death clearly demonstrates.

Citations
Unknown
External References
Stories 2
on 10 January 2012 · via source
Alrighty... I got a response from our guy at the archives. " His file was copied to microfiche and the witness statements from the Board of Enquiry (Handwritten) are difficult to read. I can make out that he was the RPG7 operator while on a patrol when the RPG was fired while they were all sitting in the Buffel. It seems he was cut in half by the projectile (I assume that this was from the rocket blast) as several other members were injured. I tried to copy the statements but they are not clear and difficult to read. There was also a post-mortem report on his injuries but I didn't copy that. If they really want to get the details, I can try and find one of the guys (the section leader, Rfm C Bodenstein, was sitting near him and was the first witness at the Enquiry) who was with him in the vehicle and see if he wants to talk to the family. Failing that, there may be the main copy of the BoE at the Schweikert Bldg Archive but I am not sure if it has been de-classified yet and might cost money as we have to apply for access." Derek Walker
by Ben Barnard on 19 November 2014 · via source
Coen was from 2 Regiment de la Ray in Potchefstroom and serving 3 month boarder duty during the time of the incident.
Dedications

No dedications have been added yet.