Face smashed with a brick
Woman’s face was smashed with a brick twice when she was mugged.
Monique Grobler (30) is recovering from a violent mugging that occurred on 22 January.
The Randpark Ridge resident was walking on a side path near Rabie Street where it goes under the N1 Highway in Malanshof, when a young well-dressed man stopped her.
He hit her in the face with a brick twice, leaving her unconscious. He then stabbed her in her left thigh and stole items from her handbag including her cellphone.
When she awoke her pants were lying on the ground next to her. She screamed and passersby helped her until police and paramedics arrived.
Grobler’s jaw was fractured and she has had two teeth removed by her doctor. She also had to remove four teeth herself which were stuck in her gums and mouth. A dental bridge was put in place to save two more cracked teeth.
She is taking antiretroviral drugs and has multiple stitches in her thigh and mouth. Grobler can only have food in liquid form until her mouth heals.
“At the moment I am very scared,” Grobler said. “I drove with my mom to the shops yesterday to get yoghurt. There were a lot of guys around and I was afraid.”
Grobler is seeing a trauma councillor and leaves the house only to visit the Helen Joseph Hospital and the Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital.
She has two children at Fontainebleau Primary School, a son aged 13 and a daughter aged nine.
“Sometimes my son cannot look at me,” she said. “It is even hard for me to look in the mirror. My son is very angry. They will see the school psychologist.”
Blood test results showed that Grobler did not have HIV or any other Sexually Transmitted Diseases, though these results were too early to be conclusive.
“I hope something will get done about this. Children and old ladies also take that route.”
The area where the mugging occurred is situated on the shared border of the Linden and Honeydew police stations’ jurisdiction.
The stations have been involved in numerous projects to fight crime in the area.
The Metro police told Ward 104 councillor Mike Wood that a raid in the area would take place in the future.
Details: Linden Police Station 011 888 9211/2/3; Honeydew Police Station 011 801 8400.
