A 57-year-old Bayview man was stabbed multiple times all over his body by a relative believed to be his step son, last week. The victim, Evans Steyn, was rushed to hospital in a critical state and was released a few days later.
Steyn was attacked on Monday, 31 October, when he had apparently returned to his Bayview home after performing night shift duty on Sunday. It is alleged that the stabbing began at the home where he lived with the accused. Steyn managed to get out of the house and began to run but the suspect chased him. Steyn fell outside and the suspect started stabbing him again. Warrant Officer Collin Chetty, communications officer of Bayview SAPS, said: “On Monday, 31 October, at about 7.30am it is alleged that a man was stabbed at his residence in Floss Street Bayview multiple times by a relative. There is a 24-year-old man in custody awaiting a bail application. Anyone who witnessed the incident can contact Detective Sergeant Floyd on 031-405-7204.”
The neighbours were alerted when they heard commotion and they ran outside to assist. While assisting the victim, it is alleged that the stabbing still continued in full view of the community and it was only until a man hit the suspect with a stone on his head that he stopped. Patsy Chetty, one of the neighbours who assisted Steyn, spoke to the Merebank & Chatsworth Tabloid, giving a run down of what took place on the day. She said: “Another neighbour called out my name numerous times. I ran outside. I noticed a big kitchen knife lying at the bottom of a stairway, covered in blood. I saw Steyn running and he then collapsed. I went to his assistance and noticed a stab wound above his heart. As he was breathing, blood was gushing out. I was so horrified and scared to see him in that condition. I took a towel and applied pressure on the wound for the blood to stop pouring out. “I then noticed the accused running towards us with a bush-knife. He was covered in the man’s blood. He did not care that this man was in a critical condition and all I could do at that time was assist Steyn to wake up and we started running away from the accused. I feared for my life because the accused was armed but also as a human being, I could not leave Steyn in that condition so I did my best to assist him.”
Chetty said that while they were running, the accused approached them and started stabbing Steyn continuously. “I started screaming and crying as I watched blood gushing out of his body. The accused was behaving like an animal. One of the neighbours hit him with a stone and that is when he stopped stabbing Steyn. Steyn kept telling me that he was going to die and I was scared for his life. After some time, he was rushed to the hospital. “I believe that the accused was high on drugs and we as a community will not allow him back into this area as he is a danger to society and the children who live in our community. We are thankful that our children went to school and did not witness the horrendous incident because they would have been terrified,” added Chetty. Community members claim that this was not the first time that Steyn was attacked by his relative. Tootsie Francis, director of SA Outreach and Emergency Services, said that they cannot condone this behaviour. “Sadly, we are losing our children to drugs and as a result, parents or adults have to suffer. We did talks on the older people’s act in the very same area at a church. It saddened me to hear how children are abusing their parents. I would like to encourage them not to accept abuse. There is help out there and they should speak up and not remain silent,” said Francis. The directors of SA Outreach and Emergency Services can be contacted on 073-226-5657 and Tootsie Francis can be contacted on 063-405-2322.
