A South African salesman who murdered his ex-wife and wounded his granddaughter and her boyfriend in far away New Zeland, is now singing like a canary.
Brent Scott, 49, stabbed his ex-wife Heidi Welman to death last Thursday in Auckland and inflicted abdomen stab wounds on granddaughter, Taryn Welman-Scot, 22, and her boyfriend Matija Miletic, 22.
Ex-wife Heidi Welman, 41, was found dead outside her home in North Shore; while neighbours found Taryn and her boyfriend Matija lying in the street clutching their stomachs, and were rushed to hospital.
After the foul deed, Scott, a knife-sharpener salesman, donned his disappearing shoes and headed for the Auckland airport, ostensibly to disappear into his native South Africa.
But the ghost of his ex-wife refused to allow him, as he was caught by customs at about 11am.
Warthog Blade Sharpeners, a George-based company, lists Scott as its sole agent in the country.
Welman’s mother, Joy, 75, was quoted as saying that ‘the murder was the end point of a cycle of abuse.’
A family friend who answered the phone during a follow-up call, said Joy was preparing to fly to Auckland on Friday to be there for her granddaughter whose lung was punctured in the attack.
“Everything you need to know about what happened is already out there,” said the friend, who did not want to be named.
“She just cannot talk to anyone right now,” she added before hanging up.
According to reports Heidi was an experienced nurse at Southern Cross North Harbour hospital.
“It is with great sadness that I confirm that our valued staff member, Heidi, was fatally injured in (the) events on Mahoney Dr,” hospital manager Jeanette Kini said in a statement.
In a blog post, New Zealand Police commissioner, Mike Bush, offered his condolences to the family.
“Our thoughts are with the family and friends of the victims and the many people who will have been affected in some way by this tragedy – a stark reminder in White Ribbon week of the horror of family violence.
“It was clearly a distressing situation for local people, including the students and staff at the schools which had to be locked down. I thank all the police staff involved for resolving matters with the swift arrest of a suspect.
“I visited the scene yesterday to support our staff and I wish the investigation team well as they piece together the shocking events of the day.”
Before Scott’s arrest at the airport the neighbourhood had been on high alert as a local school was closed for the day while the searchwas on for him.
On Friday on Facebook, a relative of Heidi’s shared a link to the White Ribbon campaign, a pledge against violence against women. The South African mom was murdered during a week devoted to the campaign.