Durban - THE family of murdered Durban student Natasha Conabeer has lost all hope in law enforcement after no arrest has been made a year after she was killed.
The 23-year-old went missing for more than three weeks after she was last seen in Florida Road on August 19 last year. Her relatives last heard from her on August 22.
Conabeer was dumped outside her home in Inanda, north of Durban, alive but unconscious and in a critical condition, on September 8.
She was taken to hospital where she died the next day.
The family last year said the doctors suspected poisoning after she was found with a high level of paracetamol in her body which affected her organs.
Speaking to The Mercury yesterday, Rosemary Conabeer, Natasha’s mother, said she was heartbroken about her daughter’s death and had lost hope in the police.
She said the police failed to find Natasha after she went missing for three weeks and they were now, after a year, “not anywhere” in arresting suspects.
“There is nothing being done. The sad part is that they haven’t been communicating with us regarding the investigation for over a year.
“The last time they spoke to us was on September 11 last year when the investigator came to get information from us. That was it. Nothing, not even a call from them,” she said.
She said that she was happy when KwaZulu-Natal Premier Sihle Zikalala and eThekwini mayor Mxolisi Kaunda visited the family last year and was hopeful that at least by now, the suspects would have been arrested.
“There is no justice and it hurts me a lot. It is clear that this is a life we have to normalise ourselves with in this country.
“We are also now as a family living in fear because the people who did this to Natasha are still out there.”
According to Conabeer, they have not received post mortem results from the police. When they asked about it, they were told that it may take years to come back.
Conabeer described the month of September as a “month of sorrow”, saying that this time of the year reminded her of her daughter.
“I always cry, all the time. I can’t even sleep peacefully at night because she is all I think about. I am not well mentally, physically and emotionally. I haven’t been at peace ever since she passed away. I hope that she is resting peacefully,” she said.
She said her daughter’s death had also affected her work performance as she sometimes found herself crying at work.
“I always ask myself who will look after me as Natasha was my only hope. I fear that I will also die not knowing what happened to my child,” she added.
KZN provincial police spokesperson Colonel Thembeka Mbele said the family was informed of the post mortem results.
Mbele said the case was still under investigation and the family was being updated on the investigation.
The Mercury