A PRIMARY school security guard has been arrested after he allegedly stabbed a Phoenix woman 42 times and left her for dead in the school yard.
Anuradha Tani Naicker, 48, is lucky to be alive after she sustained multiple stab wounds to her face, body and head. She was also robbed of her belongings.
A 21-year-old suspect appeared in the Phoenix Magistrate’s Court last week, on charges of attempted murder and theft. A second suspect is on the run.
Naicker’s daughter, Daylene, said her mother was visiting family and friends in Stanmore, on August 11, when she was attacked.
She said her mother was walking past the school, when the security guard allegedly grabbed her mother and dragged her into the school yard.
“My mother recalls seeing the security guard and another man attacking her. She lost consciousness as they stabbed her. She said when she woke up, about two hours later, she screamed for help,” said Daylene.
Her mother had been unemployed and homeless and wanted to visit the people who had helped her in that time, she said. “We did not know that she was homeless. But when we found out we took her in and helped her get her life back on track. She was proud of how far she had come in recent months,” said Daylene. “My grandmother had dropped her off in Stanmore and that was the last time we saw her.
“On Monday morning, I received a call from the Phoenix police asking me if I knew Anuradha and if she lived with me. I said she was my mom and lived with me in Newlands. The policeman said he would call me back.
“A few minutes later, I received a call from a nurse from a hospital in Phoenix. The nurse said that my mom was in a critical condition and had been stabbed multiple times,” she said. Daylene said she went to the hospital and found her mother unconscious and covered in blood.
“She had stab wounds on her arms, face, back, legs, head, stomach and chest. Her body was swollen.
“Doctors told me that one of the lacerations missed her jugular vein by inches. Her lung was also punctured and she had to undergo surgery to her diaphragm,” she added.
Gareth Naidoo, spokesperson for KZN VIP Security Services, said they received calls from concerned residents living in homes neighbouring Millview Primary School.
“They said they heard a woman screaming. It sounded like she was in terrible pain. Responders got to the school and found the female with stab wounds,” Naidoo said.
Sharitha Bisnath, principal of the school, said she was notified of the attack by KZN VIP Security Services, who rendered services to the school.
She said the security guard who allegedly attacked the woman was employed privately by the school to work during weekdays only. He was not an employee of KZN VIP Security Services.
“He was not supposed to be at the school at night. We employed him the week prior to the attack and he was still on probation. He is from this community,” Bisnath said.
Mark Nadesan, spokesperson for the Phoenix Community Policing Forum (CPF), said: “It’s sad and shocking to hear about an attack of this nature in Women’s Month.
“Women must pay attention to their surroundings to ensure their well-being and safety. We also encourage schools to take proper measures in employing people to work on their premises. Schools are supposed to be a safe haven for children. There must be stringent protocols in respect of hiring employees to work at schools,” Nadesan added.