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Black model, German boyfriend brutally assaulted by racist rugby stars in South Africa casino: 'You are dating a baboon'

Ngomani, known as the Naomi Campbell of South Africa, and her businessman fiance Tobias Zehetleitner were at the Time Square Casino in Pretoria, South Africa on July 11 when the attack took place
UPDATED JUL 15, 2019

Mirriam Ngomani, film star and famous black model in South Africa, and her German boyfriend Tobias Zehetleitner were brutally beaten up in an alleged racist attack on Thursday by star rugby players in Pretoria.

Ngomani and Zehetleitner had reportedly been enjoying a night out at a casino in Pretoria, South Africa when they were targeted by the players. She was left with a broken leg.

The agent of the model said at least five white men who attacked the couple are well-known patrons of the casino and players from a "famous rugby club", the Daily Mail reported.

The pair were reportedly in a queue to cash up their winnings at the Time Square Casino at 3 a.m. on July 11 when a white man flicked a lit cigarette towards Ngomani.

Zehetleitner, who was holding his fiancee's hand at the time, said: "I went over and asked this guy what his problem was and he pointed straight at Mirriam and said 'What's wrong with you man? You are dating a baboon, a monkey.'"

"Two of his white friends pulled him away but, after we had cashed our winnings, we had to walk past six or seven of these white guys and one called her 'kaffir' and 'black b****'," Zehetleitner said. He then confronted the group about the racist remarks and they attacked him.

"Three jumped on me and all and were giving me a kicking on the ground and I saw Mirriam being attacked so shrugged these three off and bundled a couple of guys off of my fiancée," he said. "Then they all attacked me at once. I can handle three but five or six or seven or however many it was too much... I was beaten unconscious. And when I came round, they had all gone."

Mirriam Ngomani with partner Tobias Zehetleitner. (Facebook/ Tobias Zehetleitner)

Zehetleitner said that, when he gained consciousness, he found his partner in agony, as her left leg was badly broken.

"The foot was pointing away at 90 degrees and she had been slapped around the face and been kicked," Zehetleitner said. "She is in so much agony and has so many painkillers and has just had a major operation to fix her leg but the obvious fear for her as a model is will she be scarred or left with a limp."

"Mirriam is known as the Catwalk Queen for her distinctive walk and teaches it to all the beauty pageant contestants and new models. She is the Naomi Campbell of South Africa. But if she cannot walk properly or is badly scarred, this could end her modeling career," the model's partner added.

The German businessman said that he expected an arrest would be made "very quickly" as he has gotten his lawyers involved and was prepared to "ruin their careers because they had no qualms about trying to ruin Mirriam's."

The couple has postponed their wedding because of the brutal attack.  Zehetleitner added that it was not the first time they had been subjected to racist abuse in the region.

Tobias Zehetleitner was left with a broken leg after the assault. (Facebook/Tobias Zehetleitner)

"As an interracial couple we have never had any trouble in townships or in Cape Town or Johannesburg, but in Pretoria, where we both live, we get vile racist abuse all the time. So many people see it is as wrong for a black woman and a white man to be together. How in this age can people call a black woman a baboon or a monkey or use the K-word? It is just so wrong to have to put up with this sort of racial abuse," Zehetleitner said.

Ngomani also released a statement saying she was in a lot of pain after the "sick and disgusting attack". 

"Doctors have told me that my leg is broken and will take a very long time to heal, maybe three months. I am so scared and terrified that my legs have been scarred and I don't know if I will ever be able to show them off again and do my modeling on the catwalk if there are bad scars. They will have to pay for this as what they did was evil and I would like them to be put in prison and never come out. Why do they do this just because we are different colors?" she said.

A spokesperson for South African Police Service confirmed the attack, stating that they are probing the incident and going through the security footage of the casino.

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