Durban - The murder of a young Lenasia mother of two, stabbed by intruders on Monday moments after sending her children to school, has rocked the community.
The killers rummaged through Lise Nadesan’s West Side home, eventually abandoning their bounty of electronic gadgets and leaving the “homely” receptionist for dead in the lounge.
According to community activist Sheraaz Hassan, Nadesan, 25, was alive when he later gained access into her home via the kitchen after he was notified that there was something amiss.
“She sustained a single stab wound to her abdomen and was gasping for air. Paramedics tried to revive her without success,” he said.
Nadesan’s relative, Logan Nadesan, a member of the area’s CPF, said before her death Lise had called her husband, Jodash (his nephew), while the robbers were with her, to confirm they did not have a safe.
“She was screaming. She just told Jodash to tell them there was no safe,” said Logan, who added the call had disconnected.
Despite the assurance, he said the killers still saw fit to stab the defenceless woman, who was preparing to set off for work at a local garage.
Logan said his nephew was battling to come to terms with the death, more so at the thought of having to tell their sons, aged 4 and 6.
He said the area was not high risk, with only occasional break-ins.
Hassan said Nadesan’s husband and mother-in-law had left for work on Monday morning and she had then placed her two sons in the school taxi. The taxi driver had seen Nadesan walk alone towards her home.
A neighbour, said Hassan, had heard a woman’s screams and informed his son to check what was happening. The man had scaled the family’s boundary wall to gain access to the property.
Both the front and back door burglar gates were closed but the back kitchen door was open. From the door, the man saw Nadesan lying on the floor and they alerted Logan, who in turn called Hassan.
“When I arrived, I noticed there were no signs of forced entry but this is still to be investigated. Peering in from the back door, I noticed keys on the kitchen table.
“Because the gate was locked, I couldn’t access it. So, I managed to use a broom to wrangle it off the table. When we entered, no one else was inside.
“Lise was alive and gasping for air up until the paramedics arrived. She wasn’t able to speak because her wound was internal. Sadly, she passed away while at home.”
Hassan said the killers had gathered a host of electronic gadgets into a washing basket, including a hair dryer and iPhone, to take with them. But they seem to have been disturbed as they left the gadgets behind.
He said he did not know if Nadasen could have known her killers, and that was how they gained entrance into the home, or if they threw the house keys on to the kitchen table, through the burglar guards, after they left.
Hassan described the killing as “callous, senseless and brutal”.
Logan said by the time he and Jodash arrived, Nadesan was dead.
“This was an unnecessary killing. We don’t know what to think. She was so young and did not deserve to die in the manner she did,” he said.
“We always read about these killings in the newspaper and on social media, but we never think it will happen to someone we know.”
Logan said Nadesan's greatest joys were her husband, who she loved dearly, and their sons.
“They were a nice couple and nice a family. She was always one to smile and hug you when she saw you.”
A case of murder is being investigated by Lenasia police.
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