Caterine Rattray, the mother of the young woman who was brutally beaten during a violent burglary in Sheffield on December 31 said her daughter and son-law were still recovering from the attack.

Simon and Amy* were left badly injured and traumatised when their house in an estate in Sheffield Beach was burgled in the early hours of the morning.

The couple and their nine month old baby who moved into the estate a week before the incident, were woken to the sight of five men armed with pangas, knives and screwdivers surrounding their bed.

Amy was hit six times with a panga as she tried to crawl to her baby’s room while her husband Simon’s wrist and finger was sliced as he tried to fend off an attack with a knife.

Amy’s beating caused severe bruising and haematoma and Simon spent several hours in surgery having the nerves and tendons reattached in his finger.

He still does not have any feeling in his finger.

“They have been living with my husband and I since the attack and they are still too traumatized to go back to the house.

“They have been receiving ongoing therapy and are making slow progress.

“Thankfully my daughter has her baby to keep her busy.”

Rattray said that during the attack the burglars did not only physically abuse the couple but also they made a point of traumatizing them.

“After they had been tied up, the men came back into the room and poured cold juice over them and on the floor.

“They said that it was petrol and that they were going to set them on fire. That’s when they both started screaming and the men left.

“Out of all my children Amy is the most gentle, and she still has trouble going to sleep at night.”

Amy, who is a professional photographer, had all her equipment and hard drives stolen.

The hard drives contained photographs from weddings she had worked at just days before the attack.

The family offered a reward for the recovery of those hard drives but have had no news to this end.

“We have reimbursed the bridal couples but that is not enough.

“Amy is still distraught about letting them down and we hope that somehow we will get those hard drives back.”

Despite this the family have been overwhelmed by the love and support that so many people have showed to them.

“We have had people praying for us and some people have even offered places for them to stay.

“It will take a while for my daughter to get back into her photography.

“A professional photographer from Cape Town called the other day, said she was on maternity leave and offered for Amy to use her equipment. Although she did not take her up on the offer, we were so touched.”

They are still offering a substantial reward for the equipment.

Rattray said that she hopes that her daughter and son-in law will one day be able to return to their home in the estate as it was their dream home when they bought it.

She said that the estate and the residents have been having meetings.

*Names have been changed.

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