The girlfriend of a man who died after a knife was “thrown at him” and struck him in the chest has told of how she tried to save him amid the unfolding horror.
Juris Viktorovs (36), who was originally from Latvia, was found dead with a stab wound to the chest in the home he shared with girlfriend Brenda Kane in Ballyconnell, Co Wicklow, last Thursday evening.
And in her first interview since the horrific incident, a devastated Brenda told The Star how she desperately tried to save Juris’s life with CPR — but he was already gone.
She said: “It hit me straight away [that he was dead]. I did CPR on him but I couldn’t save him.
“I just remember a knife being thrown and that was it. It hit him in the chest. No one expected it to happen.
“I had one of my jumpers on his wound and pressed down on his chest a few times and breathed in through his mouth, but he just went cold.”
A number of people were in the house during the incident.
Two people — a woman in her 30s and a man in his 30s were arrested over Juris’s death — and they have since been released without charge, with a file gone to the Director of Public Prosecutions.
Brenda was not arrested over the incident — but says she was present in the room when she saw Juris get struck with a knife that she says was thrown across the room.
Some of the details of what Brenda says she witnessed cannot be printed for legal reasons — but she claims an argument took place in the home and that the knife was thrown during the process.
She told how an individual “came into our room looking for a cigarette” and that another person then “came in going crazy” because they wanted that person to leave the room.
It was then that Brenda says the knife was thrown — and that later an individual came into the room and claimed her boyfriend wasn’t dead.
"[They] first came in and checked him and they started screaming, ‘He’s f*cking dead’," she remembers.
“Then [they] came back in again, checked him and said, ‘Oh he’s OK he’s just very drunk, he’s sleeping.
“But I knew that wasn’t the case. I’d already called for an ambulance straight away and I was waiting for the ambulance at this time.”
And speaking today, Brenda says she is still in shock over the incident, and is deeply upset about the loss of her partner.
“I’m still grieving, I’m not coping, he was the love of my life,” Brenda said.
“He was a really good cook. He had a really good sense of humour and he got on well with everyone.
“He was very kind. He was kind to everybody.
“I can’t believe I won’t see him again. We were never apart like. If he went to the shop like I went to the shop.
“If he was cooking dinner then I would be there helping him. We done everything together,” she said.
And Brenda, who says she cannot bring herself to return to the house in Ballyconnell since the incident, told how she cannot even attend Juris’s funeral — because she believes some people are angry with her.
"[People] are just angry at everybody that was in the house," she said.
"I was told to stay away from the funeral.
“I haven’t really been talking to many people to be honest.
“People are getting in touch with me but I just don’t feel like talking to anybody about it.
“I’m not even staying in my house. I can’t even face being in my house.
“I’d like to add more but for now I just want to keep it simple because I’m just blocking it all out.”
Brenda insisted that she is doing everything she can to assist the garda investigation — including handing over her mobile phone — and giving a statement to officers following the incident.
“I’ve been talking to the guards every day,” she said, adding that she wants to see justice for her partner.
Gardai in Baltinglass are appealing to anyone who may have information in relation to the incident to contact them.
“Anyone who was in the village of Ballyconnell on Thursday or any person who noticed any unusual activity there yesterday evening is asked to contact investigating gardai,” said a garda spokeswoman.
“Any person who was in the village of Ballyconnell on Thursday night between 7pm and 8.15pm and who may have camera footage of the area is asked to make this available.
“Similarly, any road user who was travelling in the area and who may have camera or dash cam footage is asked to make this available to investigating gardai.
“Any person with any information which may be relevant to the Garda investigation should contact Baltinglass Garda Station on 059 648 2610, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111, or any Garda station,” the garda spokeswoman added.
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