A couple died in a murder-suicide on Saturday night. The husband, 29, allegedly stabbed his 22-year-old wife before pushing her out of their sixth floor flat window, then jumped to his own death a few minutes later.
Stunned witnesses said the incident happened within a few minutes.
Diresh Hariechuran said he was chatting to a friend in Stalwart Simelane (Stanger) Street in Durban's CBD at about 6pm when he heard a woman screaming for help from a nearby block of flats.
“We saw a woman holding on to the ledge, ready to jump. People below her in the street begged her not to jump.
“We then saw she was fighting to stay on the ledge and was being pushed out of the window by a man.
“She fell after he stabbed her and landed at our feet. The knife landed nearby.”
He said the woman was still breathing, but she was bleeding profusely from a wound to her head.
“The man then stepped out on the ledge and stood there for a few minutes. We also told him not to jump but he stretched out his hands and jumped, landing face first on the pavement.
“He had a cellphone in his hand, but I’m not sure if he was talking to anyone before he jumped. We could see instantly that he was dead,” said Hariechuran.
Police spokesman Colonel Jay Naicker confirmed the incident, saying a murder and inquest docket would be opened.
He could not confirm if the couple had any children, saying the investigation was at an early stage.
However, Hariechuran said residents from the couple’s building had said their only child was at a shopping centre with a relative last night and also described the couple as “disruptive and always fighting”.
“Living in town, you see a lot of bad things. But I have never seen someone die so gruesomely in front of me. The woman fought for her life, and seeing her die on that pavement was terrible.”
Sunday Tribune