A 65-YEAR-OLD Pinetown resident, David van der Merwe, was stabbed and assaulted, by two men, at the intersection of Richmond and Old Main Road for his cellphone.
According to his wife, Dolores, the window to his vehicle was a quarter of the way down when he came to a stop at the intersection.
One of the two suspects allegedly put his arm into the car and opened the car door from inside.
The second man pulled the door open.
Dolores said the two men tried to reach for her husband’s cellphone, which was on a magnet on the dashboard, as well as whatever other valuables they could see.
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David fended them off and knocked his cellphone onto the floor of the car.
During his attempt to fend off the two men, one of the assailants pulled out a knife.
The assailant stabbed David multiple times in his left hand.
“The right arm is very bad. The tendons and muscles were completely cut,” said Delores.
Despite his condition, she said he drove himself to Life The Crompton Hospital.
“The nurses and the staff that were on duty at Crompton Hospital on Friday evening were really wonderful. They did the best they could for David. They gave me some swabs to try and absorb some of the blood in the car and plastic to cover the seats so that I could take it (the car) home,” said his wife.
He was given an AIDS test as well as a Covid-19 test, and later transferred to Netcare St Augustine’s Hospital.
David went into the operating theatre on Sunday for four and a half hours.
Delores said that a drain was put into his arm to help clear up any infection and, this Friday, the wound would be stitched up completely.
“Hopefully he can come home on Saturday,” she said.
Caxton Local Media Covid-19 reporting
