Durban — Armed with a bush knife, an enraged Chatsworth man stormed the home of his in-laws, chopping and slashing them as well as his estranged wife and 7-year-old son. He then slit his own throat.
While the family of Shalendra Singh, 38, prepares for his funeral, his wife, Denise Govender, 30, lies in a critical condition at RK Khan Hospital along with her father, Allan Govender, 57.
Her 54-year-old mother, Reena and son Sohail Singh have since been discharged.
Geraldine Govender says her sister met Singh on the group chat Mxit, and when the family first met him he seemed like a good person — he treated her well. But over the years he started to change and he became abusive, possessive and at times threatened to shoot her and Sohail.
Geraldine says Denise was afraid her son would get hurt and in March last year, she left Singh.
“She obtained a protection order against him in April and police had confiscated his gun as well. He had a peace order against my sister. Denise tried to maintain a fairly good relationship with him because of Sohail... He was never kept away from his son." says Geraldine.
Geraldine said he was allowed to see the child but not to see or come into contact with Denise.
“On Monday I was seated in my parents’ bedroom with my 7-year-old daughter, Dinikha, and my father. He was sick so I was rubbing his back. Denise, my mom, Sohail and my older daughter, Mayushka, were in the living room,” explains Geraldine
Through the bedroom window she saw Singh open the driveway gate and enter the yard.
“He walked through the front door where my mom and Denise were standing. The next thing I heard were their screams. I looked into the living room and all I could see was Shalendra waving around a large knife, which looked like a bush knife, at them.”
He cut their mom’s ears and slashed her neck and head, Denise was chopped on the neck, back, hands and head and Sohail was injured on his hands and neck.
CRITICAL: Denise Govender, 30
Singh then retrieved a meat cleaver from their kitchen before attacking their father, Geraldine and her daughter, Dinikha.
“(After attacking my father, injuring his face and hands,) He then turned his attention to my younger daughter Dinikha. I grabbed her and he tried to attack me. Luckily, my father came to my aid and fought with him, giving me and my daughter a chance to run out of the house to alert neighbours as to what was happening," says Geraldine.
Singh came out of the house in search of me and my daughter; this gave everyone else a chance to flee.”
When he was unable to successfully attack anyone else, he returned to their house and slit his throat.
He was found by police in a pool of blood semi-concious. He later died in hospital.
“It was like he was another person. He did not care who he hurt. He just wanted all of us dead," says Geraldine.