“I thought I was going to die.”
The words of Adéle Nel who was attacked in her Terenure home on Wednesday morning last week.
Lucky for her, her teenage (16) stepson called for help while hiding in the bathroom.
Adéle was doing laundry outside when an unknown man ambushed and pushed her into the house.
“I had just stepped into the bathroom when I heard Adéle screaming,” said Adéle’s stepson, Sheldon (16).
“I heard a male voice and realised it was an intruder. I wanted to go out and help but quickly thought of getting help. Luckily I had my cellphone with me and quickly put it on silent.
“I sent messages to my father telling him to come home. When I realised my father was not responding, I also sent messages to my mother, grandmother and girlfriend asking them to get hold of my father. My girlfriend immediately called my father and managed to get hold of him.”
Sheldon’s father, Herman, said it was 9.51am when he looked at his watch.
“I work in Spartan, which is not far from home, so when I got the call from Sheldon’s girlfriend and saw his messages, I explained the situation to my boss and left,” said Herman. “I work with loud machinery which is why I couldn’t hear the message alert on my phone.”
While Sheldon was calling for help, Adéle was on the floor fighting for her life. “The man pushed me to the floor and started strangling me with his one hand and hitting me with the other,” said Adéle.
“I realised the more I screamed the tighter his grip became and I stopped screaming when he got up to get a knife. He told me he was going to kill me. He put a cloth in my mouth, tied my hands and feet with shoelaces and threw me on the bed with a blanket over me.”
With Adéle on the bed the suspect began to ransack the house. Sheldon said he thought of going out but decided it would be safer for both of them to stay in the bathroom.
“The man tried to enter the bathroom but I blocked the door,” said Sheldon. “At that time I knew my dad was on his way.”
Herman was home within 20 minutes. “I parked my motorcycle and saw a man searching the house. When he turned around, he was puzzled to see me,” said Herman.
“He ran out of the house with a knife and when he tried to stab me, I hit him with my helmet and he ran. Sheldon heard the commotion and came out of the bathroom. We chased the perpetrator with the help of two other men.
“We jumped over two walls trying to catch him but I thought of my wife and rushed back to her.”
Sheldon said he managed to catch the man before he jumped the third wall. “We got into a bit of a brawl and although he escaped, I managed to get the bag he had taken with my toiletry bag, father’s laptop, a jacket, cables and a speaker inside,” explained Sheldon.
“He made off with another jacket, the knife he took from our house, Adéle’s phone and her rings.”
Adéle said although it was over, she was still battling to deal with the trauma. “I battle to sleep because I see his face every time I close my eyes,” she shared.
“I injured my collar bone and have bruises on my neck, chest and eyes. I can’t swallow or turn my head properly because both my neck and throat are extremely painful. I remember passing out and regaining consciousness about three times while he was strangling me.”
Herman was furious at what happened but rather relieved that the man didn’t rape her. “He hurt her a lot and I am angry for what he put my wife and son through. I just hope they both recover from this incident soon.”
Herman is trying to remain positive under the circumstances: “All those who were here after the incident agree that my son was brave to have been able to think fast and stay in the bathroom and get help.
“Things might have turned for the worse had he come out. I am proud of him and my wife for fighting for her life, she was strong through it all.
“Thank you to my company for sending a car to transport my wife to hospital after the incident. Thank you to everyone who came and all those who continue to support us.”
Herman appeals to the community to be on high alert. After describing the man, neighbours said they had seen him sitting on the side of the road prior to the incident.
