I never want you to be happy: Ex-hubby tells nurse pregnant with twins and stabs her to death in front of daughter (7)

Justice for Aleyka: The Chilling Final Words and the Unseen Crisis in Pietermaritzburg

"I would never want you to be happy."

These were the last words Aleyka Shaik allegedly heard before her life, and the lives of her unborn twins, were violently extinguished in a suburban driveway in Northdale. The speaker was not a masked intruder or a random assailant, but the man she once called her husband, Keith Chetty. The witness was not a seasoned investigator or a passer-by, but their own seven-year-old daughter, who watched from the backseat as her mother was butchered.

The brutal killing of Shaik, a 34-year-old professional nurse who dedicated her life to saving others in the High Care Unit at Mediclinic Pietermaritzburg, has ripped through the fabric of the local community. It is a story of a woman who had finally found a semblance of peace in a new marriage, only to be hunted down by a past she could not escape. Shaik was five months pregnant with twins at the time of her death—a detail that has sparked a furious debate over the adequacy of South Africa's murder charges in cases of feticide.

On a quiet Sunday evening at approximately 6:00 pm, Shaik arrived at Chetty's family home in Northdale. It was a routine visit, a necessary exchange in the complicated choreography of co-parenting. She was there to collect her daughter, who had spent the day with her father's family. Her new husband, Tristen (Aahil) Arjuna, stayed behind. He later admitted he avoided the property out of fear, following a previous altercation three months earlier where he claimed Chetty had assaulted him.

The safety Shaik sought in the familiar ritual of a school-night pickup proved to be an illusion. As she sat in her vehicle, preparing to drive away with her child, the sequence of horrors began. According to Arjuna, who recounted the details through a veil of grief, Chetty allegedly forced his way into the front passenger seat. There was no long argument, no plea for reconciliation—only the cold, premeditated delivery of a sentence: "I would never want you to be happy."

Then came the knife.

The seven-year-old girl, trapped in the confined space of the car, watched as her father allegedly plunged the blade into her mother's stomach—the very place where her twin siblings were growing. In a moment of survival instinct that no child should ever possess, the girl managed to scramble out of the vehicle and run for help. Shaik, too, tried to flee, her maternal instinct likely driving her to reach her daughter. She did not make it far. Another attack followed, leaving her with multiple stab wounds across her body. She collapsed near the vehicle and died on the pavement before paramedics could arrive.

Back at their home, Arjuna grew increasingly anxious as the minutes ticked by. Shaik was not answering her phone. When he finally managed to get through, it was not his wife's voice on the other end. "At one point, the suspect's brother answered and cut the call," Arjuna recalled. Minutes later, the silence was broken by a call from a private security company. The message was brief and devastating: his wife was dead.

The manhunt for Keith Chetty lasted two hours. He was eventually cornered and apprehended by a combination of law enforcement and community members in the Woodlands area. By Tuesday morning, the 39-year-old stood in the dock of the Pietermaritzburg Magistrate's Court. Dressed in a tracksuit top, he appeared composed, his eyes scanning the public gallery for his own family members. When Magistrate Sandile Ngwenya asked if he understood the charge of murder against him, his response was a singular, flat "Yes."

The courtroom, however, was far from calm. As the reality of the proceedings set in, loud sobs erupted from Chetty's relatives. Outside, the atmosphere was charged with a different kind of emotion: a demand for blood and justice. Gender-based violence (GBV) activists and local political figures gathered in a show of force, their placards reflecting a growing national frustration.

"He should not be given bail. He should be charged with triple murder," declared Shamiell Ally, an IFP PR councillor. The sentiment was echoed by Elton Adkins of Unite Against GBV, who vowed that the organisation would monitor the case to ensure the accused remains behind bars. The call for a "triple murder" charge highlights a significant gap in South African law, which currently does not recognise the killing of a foetus as a separate count of murder, regardless of the stage of pregnancy.

The tragedy of Aleyka Shaik is not an isolated incident; it is a symptom of a province, and a country, in the throes of a femicide epidemic. Recent crime statistics for the period of October 2025 to December 2025 reveal a harrowing reality: 6,351 murders were recorded in South Africa in just three months—an average of 71 lives lost every single day. In KwaZulu-Natal, the situation is particularly dire. The provincial government recently deployed 211 GBV activists to police stations across the province in a desperate attempt to curb the violence, yet the bodies continue to pile up.

Pietermaritzburg itself has seen a disturbing rise in violent crime. Earlier this year, reports surfaced of increasing rape cases and domestic stabbings in the northern suburbs. For many, Shaik's death is the breaking point. At a prayer service held at the Christian Believers Fellowship Church, the grief was palpable. Colleagues from Mediclinic spoke of a dedicated professional, while family members struggled to reconcile the woman they loved with the victim described in police reports.

Shaik's brother-in-law, Brylan Arjuna, spoke of the collective loss. "Today, we share the loss of my brother's wife, Aleyka, and their two babies. It is heartbreaking for us and for the community," he said. His words carried a challenge to the men of the city: "We see that this has become a norm in society. It is time for men to stand up and fight against it. This will not be an easy battle, but we will get through it."

As the legal process begins, the focus shifts to the upcoming bail application. State prosecutor Philile Phoswa has indicated that the state needs time to verify Chetty's profile and alternative address. For now, he remains in custody, a small comfort to a family that must now find a way to explain to a seven-year-old girl why her father took her mother away.

The investigation into Aleyka Shaik's death will likely delve into the history of her relationship with Chetty. Arjuna's claims of prior assaults suggest a pattern of behavior that was known but perhaps not stopped. It is the classic, tragic arc of domestic abuse: the escalation from threats to physical assault, and finally, to the ultimate act of control.

In the High Care Unit where Shaik worked, there is now an empty station. In the Northdale driveway, the blood has been washed away, but the memory of those final, chilling words remains. The community of Pietermaritzburg is no longer just mourning a nurse; they are witnessing the trial of a system that repeatedly fails its most vulnerable. The fight for justice for Aleyka, and for the two children who never had the chance to draw their first breath, has only just begun.

"Together, we will ensure that all victims receive the justice they deserve through the support and unity of the community," Brylan Arjuna promised. Whether the South African justice system is capable of delivering that justice remains to be seen. For now, the city waits, the family weeps, and a seven-year-old girl carries a burden of memory that no amount of court rulings can ever truly erase.

The Broader Context: GBV in South Africa (2025-2026)

• Daily Murder Rate: Approximately 71 people murdered per day nationally.
• Provincial Response: KZN has deployed 211 specialized GBV activists to police stations.
• Legislative Gap: Current laws do not allow for murder charges for unborn foetuses, leading to calls for "Triple Murder" charges in this case.
• Regional Trends: Pietermaritzburg has seen a noted increase in domestic violence reports in early 2026.