“I WOULD never want you to be happy” … were the words a Pietermaritzburg man allegedly uttered before he stabbed his pregnant ex-wife in the stomach, in full view of their 7-year-old daughter.
Newly-married, Aleyka Shaik, 34, was five months pregnant with twins, when she was stabbed to death in her vehicle, on Sunday night.
Shaik had gone to fetch her daughter, Zahraa, from her ex-husband’s home in Northdale, when the attack occurred.
Keith Chetty, 39, appeared in the Pietermaritzburg Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday, on a charge of murder.
Shaik’s husband, Tristen (Aahil) Arjuna, alleged his wife was ambushed while seated in her vehicle.
They had been married for two months.
“Zahraa was with her father’s family on Sunday. Keith’s brother fetched her from home and Aleyka said she would fetch her,” said Arjuna.
Image: Supplied
He claimed he did not accompany his wife, due to a previous altercation with the suspect three months earlier.
“He assaulted me. I laid charges and he was arrested, but later withdrew them for Zahraa’s sake,” he said.
Arjuna said Zahraa witnessed her mother being stabbed to death, and had recounted the details to him.
“The suspect allegedly entered the front passenger seat and told Aleyka, ‘I would never want you to be happy’, before he stabbed her in the stomach. He then allegedly stabbed her again in the back as she leaned forward. Zahraa managed to escape from the vehicle and ran for help,” said Arjuna.
“The suspect’s family came outside and took Zahraa to the back of the house but did not stop him from stabbing my wife,” Arjuna alleged.
He claimed that when an injured Shaik tried to jump off the vehicle to get to her daughter, she was attacked again and stabbed multiple times.
“She collapsed near the vehicle and died at the scene,” he added.
Arjuna said he became concerned when his wife took longer than expected to return home.
“I called her multiple times. At one point, the suspect’s brother answered and cut the call. Minutes later, a security company phoned to tell me my wife was killed.”
He claimed the suspect fled on foot after the attack.
However, after a co-ordinated effort by community members, the community policing forum (CPF), and security teams, the suspect was arrested two hours later in Woodlands.
“I was told that Keith ran through the bushes and was seen jumping into a van until he was later found in a house in Woodlands. At the scene, I hugged my wife and tried to clean all the blood. Aleyka and I were friends for 20 years, partners for two years, and married for just two months.”
The couple recently celebrated their union, and were preparing for the arrival of their twins.
“We had a Nikah on January 25 after we found out she was pregnant. We were planning a big wedding in December and a gender reveal. On Sunday, we felt the babies move for the first time. We were so happy. She was only five months pregnant, and due in July.
“I cannot understand how our perfect life was taken away from us.,” he said.
Arjuna believes the killing was driven by jealousy and a history of abuse.
He said Zahraa was traumatised.
“I was devastated hearing Zahraa talk about the incident. It will be difficult for her without her mother but she will be staying with me. I will continue to take care of her and my wife’s parents. Aleyka was an only child and their breadwinner. I will fulfil her dreams for our daughter. I am shattered, but Zahraa is keeping me going, I will keep going for her.”
Arjuna said he was appalled that people stood by and watched his wife die.
“My wife was kind and loving, and we had a beautiful life together. She was always smiling. People loved her and I loved her so much. I hide and cry so I can be strong for my daughter. It is difficult to know I will never see the love of my life again,” said Arjuna.
Ward councillor Renisha Singh condemned the attack, calling it a “merciless and senseless act”.
“A young mother, pregnant with twins, brutally taken. It is difficult to imagine a greater injustice. Violence against women cannot be normalised. Enough is enough,” she said.
Family members described Shaik as a compassionate and devoted individual. Her cousin, Robby Cupido, said her death had shattered the family.
“The funeral was devastating. Her parents are elderly and dependent on her. She was bubbly, kind, and a brilliant nurse. To see her like that was traumatic. Her daughter has now lost both her parents,” said Cupido.
Gender-based violence activist Elton Adkins, from Unit Against GBV, expressed concern over the increasing number of such incidents in the area.
“We have lost another woman in Pietermaritzburg in a short space of time, along with her unborn twins. This has to stop. Men need to seek help instead of harming innocent women,” he said.
