‘A Somerset West mom has slammed slapgat cops for failing to arrest the man who viciously attacked her daughter with a brick and left her blind, after she rejected his advances.
Nikita Kalubi, 25, was left with a broken nose, a fractured skull and had to undergo an operation to have her left eye removed.
Mom Veronica says the aspiring beautician and her boyfriend were attacked on August 26 while visiting friends in Khayelitsha.
On their way to Mowbray, the group had stopped in Town Two to get vetkoek.
“Her boyfriend walked to the counter to place the order and Nikita was standing inside the shop when she was approached by this guy,” the ma said.
“He told her she is beautiful and asked her to be his girlfriend and started touching her.
“Her boyfriend stepped in and told him to leave her alone. Later we discovered that he had asked questions about Nikita before when he saw her in the area.”
Veronica says the couple decided to go home and walked through an alley.
“He knew they would walk that direction and ran around the gangetjie. Nikita was walking in front and that is when he jumped out and bashed her across the face with the brick.
“She fell over and collapsed and her boyfriend ran after the guy but then turned around to go back to her. He thought she was dead,” she added.
Nikita was rushed to a nearby hospital and later transferred to Tygerberg Hospital, where her mother was told that the vrou’s left eye had to be removed.
“The bones in her nose were also smashed with the force that he hit her and the bones on her forehead fractured,” Veronica said.
She says the suspect was later identified and residents started sharing details of his whereabouts, but claims each time she called Lingelethu SAPS, they had an excuse for not arresting him.
“First they said there were no vans, then one day I got a tip-off and went in my friend’s car.
“The guy was right in front of me and the police failed to show up for two hours. They are not serious about arresting him while he has ruined my child’s life.
“For someone to get so angry and attack a woman for saying no, I believe he is a danger to other women and the police are just not serious.”
Police spokesperson Joseph Swartbooi has confirmed that a case of assault with the intent to inflict grievous bodily harm has been opened with no arrest.
“Your source is encouraged to discuss their concerns with the station commander and/or branch commander of the mentioned SAPS office,” Swartbooi said.
“Should the complainant be unhappy with the progress, then she can even report the matter to Ipid.”