By Helen Bamford and Bronwynne Jooste
Respected University of Cape Town commercial law professor Mike Larkin, 58, who was stabbed to death by two muggers in Rondebosch on Friday, used to walk everywhere because he was partially sighted and unable to drive.
His murder has sparked an outpouring of anger and grief from colleagues and students alike, who have described him as a gentle and caring father figure and an excellent lecturer.
Larkin's attackers, who stabbed him repeatedly when he resisted their attempts to steal his bag in Roslyn Road, are still at large, said police spokesman Elliot Sinyangana.
'He was our favourite and loved by us all' Law faculty manager Mike Watermeyer, who is blind, said he and Larkin had shared the challenge of dealing with visual impairment in an "unforgiving and dangerous society".
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"We could not drive so we walked - everywhere. It is ironic that the very bravado which characterised our banter about having to walk home at night is what exposed Mike to the vicious attack to which he has now succumbed," said Watermeyer.
He said Larkin, who was divorced, was an accomplished academic and a man of immense fairness and moral integrity. "He was also a superb head of department in commercial law; a humble and concerned human being who had time for everyone."
Watermeyer said he had not only lost a colleague, but a good friend and someone from whom he had learned a great deal. "Not least of which was how to deal with the reality of my recently broken family. He gave me the strength to go on through sharing his own experience of that difficult time."
Watermeyer said he was angry and in despair over the murder.
'It's very weird to speak about him in the past tense' "I weep for my loss. I weep for all of us who share this grief. And I weep for my country."
Final-year law student Lucy Garrod said she and her fellow students had recently finished exams and would soon be graduating. "But it won't be the same now.
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