A Malmesbury man is lucky to be alive after he was robbed and stabbed 16 times on a train on Sunday.
Nicolaas Lombard, 21, was on the 7.30am train from Wellington but when he got to Dal Josafat station, he was ambushed by skelms.
His mother, Sanette Lombard, 41, says when she did not hear from her son in a few hours, she started to worry.
“I called his cellphone and when it was off, my mother’s intuition kicked in and I immediately called Metro Police and asked if any incidents were reported,” she says.
“Just after 1pm, I received a call from one of Nicolaas’ friends detailing what had happened.
“Some guys robbed him, stabbed him and jumped off the train at Dal Josafat station.
“He was stabbed right through his index finger which hit a vein.
“He was also stabbed 15 times on his left shoulder, shoulder blade, arm and right shoulder bone. He also has choke marks around his neck.”
Luckily, a Good Samaritan helped Nicolaas at the next station.
LUCKY: Nicolaas, 21
“At the Huguenot station, someone helped him and got him patched up.
“But not having a phone to contact any of us, he went on with his journey to get to his friends so we could be notified,” says Sanette.
Nicolaas is home from hospital but his recuperation will take a while.
“Doctors told us had the wounds been any deeper, he would have been in real danger.
“I am just glad that he is OK,” the mom adds.
Metrorail did not respond to queries.