Durban - An Overport mother of four was throttled, beaten, repeatedly slammed against the floor and dragged by her hair, allegedly by her gardener of three months who had threatened to kill her with a plastic pipe.
But the 42-year-old wife of a moulana bravely fought back on Monday morning until neighbours foiled the enraged man's attack.
The woman, who declined to be named, said that she was badly bruised and in severe pain on Tuesday as she and her husband, Moulana Hoosen Khan, recounted the terrifying ordeal.
Khan, a PR city councillor who was at a meeting, said the gardener, who had lived on their property for three months, was apprehended by a neighbour but then hit by a truck while trying to escape. He was admitted to hospital.
Khan lambasted the police for their alleged lack of empathy towards his wife, saying that despite several attempts to get them to tend to her, they paid more attention to the alleged assailant’s well-being.
He said of the gardener: “He appeared pleasant and his work was meticulous.
“We then gave him a place to stay on our property and provided him with everything he needed - bedding, food, the works.”
Taking up the story, the wife said: “I had called the madressa for an alternate domestic worker to assist with household chores. She was here at around 8.30am. By 9.30am, I went into the kitchen to make breakfast.”
The replacement domestic worker had hung the clothing on the washing line outside and was in the process of closing the front gate when the gardener appeared, demanding to speak to the moulana.
“He was told my husband was not at home but he (insisted) he wanted to speak to me.”
The gardener then allegedly pushed the domestic worker and closed the gate behind him, putting on the lock but not locking it.
“While making the breakfast, I was surprised to see him inside with two weapons - a plastic pipe with a metal edge and an iron rod.”
The wife said the man walked down the passage towards the back of the house and closed the door.
“My instincts kicked in and I ran towards the front door, screaming for the domestic worker to run with me. I heard him run after me.
“When I got to the gate, my hands were shaking. But I managed to take off the lock and had opened the gate halfway when he grabbed me.
“He slammed me on to the floor and hit my head against it.
“I had on a kaftan and he tried to pull at it. I fought him off and managed to stand up but he pushed me against the wall and throttled me.
“He hit me with the pipe on my body.”
She said the domestic worker managed to run outside.
“She told him she was going to call the police but he yelled back saying he was going to kill me. He instructed her to return inside and lock the gate.”
The wife said she managed, yet again, to push him off her and crawled out of the house. “I fell on the floor and screamed for help.”
But he followed her and continued his assault.
“He dragged me inside by my hair. The domestic worker asked him what he was doing. She told him to stop, while I screamed at her to help me.”
As he continued to throttle the woman, the domestic worker grabbed a broomstick and began bashing him with it on his back until the broom broke. This gave the wife the chance to escape, and she yelled once more for help.
The wife said she saw a neighbour witness the attack without coming to her aid.
Another neighbour, Zain Sheik, and his wife, Nafeesa, rushed to help but the driveway gate was locked, she said.
“I heard Zain's voice and screamed for the domestic worker to open the gate and that is what she did.”
The gardener scaled a wall to escape, running through other properties. Khan said Nafeesa carried his traumatised wife back indoors while Zain and his employee gave chase.
They managed to intercept the assailant nearby.
Khan, who was still at his meeting at the time, said: “When Nafeesa called me, she was hysterical. When I arrived and saw my wife, it was absolutely devastating. I consoled and comforted her, (then) went to where the gardener was apprehended.”
He was apparently hit by a truck in his haste to escape. The police had left the scene without taking his wife’s statement, the moulana claimed.
After he called the local station commander, officers from Phoenix SAPS arrived to take the statement, he said.
Khan said he was proud of his wife for fighting back. He denied speculation that she had been abusive to the gardener.
“His motive was to kill her. If he achieved this, he could have achieved what he wanted, to rob our home.”
Police spokeswoman Captain Nqobile Gwala said the suspect was arrested for assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm and was still in hospital under police guard.
She said Khan’s allegations would be investigated.
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