Worried mother discovers daughter strangled, becomes victim of deadly attack

Christina “Nikki” Joseph and her daughter, Brooklyn Hemmero, 15, were killed in their Woodlands flat, last Tuesday evening. Joseph’s boyfriend, Kyle Francis, 37, has been charged with their murder WHEN aPietermaritzburgmother could not get a hold of her daughter on her cellphone, she rushed home to find her dead. Christina “Nikki” Joseph’s boyfriend then allegedly turned on her and repeatedly stabbed her with a kitchen knife before he attempted to kill himself.

Joseph, 34, and her daughter, Brooklyn Hemmero, 15, were killed in their Woodlands flat, last Tuesday evening. On Monday, Joseph’s boyfriend, Kyle Francis, 37, appeared briefly in the Pietermaritzburg Magistrate’s Court, on charges of murder. He abandoned his bid for bail, and was remanded into custody until his next court appearance in April.

Sergeant Sifiso Gwala, communications officer for the Umgungundlovu District SAPS, said Francis tried to kill himself by using a razor blade to slit his throat. “It was established that the woman had returned home from work at about 8pm, and found her daughter lying unresponsive on the bed. It is alleged that the suspect attacked the mother, and repeatedly stabbed her with a kitchen knife.

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A neighbour witnessed the incident and contacted the police.” Speaking to the POST this week, Carolina Chetty, Joseph’s cousin, said they called for swift justice. “He destroyed their lives and he destroyed our families. He must be punished.” Chetty said the family were devastated.

“At their funeral, a neighbour told us that Nikki had called her from work and asked her to check on Brooklyn. Nikki told her that she had tried to call Brooklyn after school, but she did not answer her phone, and she was worried. “The neighbour said when she knocked on their door, Nikki’s partner, who she had been with for about three years, opened the door.

The neighbour said she told him that Nikki wanted to talk to Brooklyn. “He told her to tell Nikki not to worry, and Brooklyn was sleeping. When the neighbour called Nikki and told her what he said, she told the neighbour to go back and wake her up because Brooklyn never slept in the day. But when the neighbour went back, he did not answer,” she said.

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