In the evening hours of Friday the 14th of October 2022, the body of Zahraa Muller was found in Olieboom street, about 9 km away from her home. It was the call from a stranger that led her mother to the scene.
Zahraa Muller, from Heathfield, Cape town, South Africa, was a 20-year old expectant mother of a son, and she was found dead about one hour after she left her home. According to her mom Nuri Africa, 51, Zahraa left the house without her mother knowing when and where she was going to.
They had just come back from walking her sister to the youth programme in the late evening hours, and Zahraa left the house when her mother went to the bathroom. According to Nuri, she says ”I sent her a text message asking where she was, and I noticed that she was offline. I sent her an SMS and she didn’t reply”
Nuri said she had a terrible feeling that something was not right, and moments later, she received a call from Zahraa’s phone. Nuri said” it was a man, I don’t know the voice, and I was shocked when he told me to fetch my daughter in Olieboom street, Philippi. I ran to my neighbour and told him about this, he spoke to the man and he gave directions.
Nuri confirmed that Zahraa’s phone had a pattern lock, but the stranger had made the call from her phone. She further informed her ex-husband about the call and made her way to Philippi. She froze when she got to the scene and met policemen there and she could not bring herself to look at her daughter.
Although it is not known how Zahraa died, it is suspected that she may have known her attacker as she left the house wearing slippers and was not fully dressed. Investigations are underway as the police have requested anyone with good information to come forward or contact the detective anonymously.
