The bloodcurdling screams of a mother who was hacked to death by her ex-husband have been heard in court.
Dinush Kurera, 47, is accused of murdering his wife Nelomi Perera, 43, in front of their children during a terrifying attack inside the family home in Sandhurst, about 37 kilometres south-east of Melbourne.
He pleaded not guilty to murder and another charge of assaulting his teenage son during the bloody attack on December 3, 2022.
On Tuesday, jurors in Kurera’s trial in Victoria’s Supreme Court were forced to endure chilling audio of Perara’s final seconds of life.
“Help me, help me,” screamed Mrs. Perera during the recording captured by her watch.
The jury heard Kurera flew into a murderous rage after questioning his son over fears his ex-wife was seeing other men.
Crown prosecutor Mark Gibson KC told the jury the alleged bloody attack lasted 14 minutes from start to finish.
When it was over, the alleged killer calmly told police who arrived at the scene what he had done, the court heard.
“I killed my wife. She is dead there,” Kurera said.
Dinush Kurera, 47, is accused of murdering his wife Nelomi Perera in front of their children.
Despite these alleged admissions, Kurera proceeded to appear in court with his not guilty pleas.
On Wednesday, the jury is expected to hear a brief summary from his lawyer explaining how his defense is presented.
Dressed in a black suit, the alleged killer sat in the dock at the back of the courtroom as he faced the first day of his trial.
The jury heard Kurera had entered the house through a wooden fence under cover of darkness.
Ms. Perera was found dead in the kitchen surrounded by a pool of blood.
Mr Gibson alleged that Kurera, dressed in dark clothing, wearing gloves and brandishing an axe he had bought from Bunnings earlier in the day, hit his ex-wife over the head while she was smoking on the patio at around 11.25pm that night.
Nelomi Perera captured her own bloody murder with her smart watch
He had arrived home days earlier from Sri Lanka.
Mr Gibson alleged that Perera ended their marriage while he was away after discovering he had been unfaithful.
The prosecutor said Kurera could not accept that her marriage was over and she could lose the home she built for her family.
The couple’s children, a 17-year-old boy and a 16-year-old girl, heard screams from downstairs and ran to find their father holding an ax and their mother on the ground, Gibson said.
He allegedly told the teens that if they called police or tried to leave, he would set the house on fire and kill everyone, including himself, the court heard.
Ms Perera stood up and showed her daughter her head injuries, before pointing to a pool of blood on the floor, Gibson said.
She allegedly tried to reason with her husband to call an ambulance, but Kurera told her son to bring Perera an ice pack and said she wanted to talk on the couch.
Dinush Kurera, 47, is accused of murdering his wife Nelomi Perera
As the estranged family sat in the living room, Kurera asked her sons if their mother was seeing anyone else, to which the son said “some people.”
“This comment that (the boy) made to his father about his mother infuriated the defendant,” Gibson told the jury.
‘Mr Kurera approached Nelomi and hit her several times.’
He said Kurera’s “sustained, brutal and vicious attack” left Perera with 35 wounds to vulnerable parts of his body, both from the axe and a chef’s knife taken from the kitchen.
His son tried to run outside and get help, but Kurera allegedly chased him down and hit the teen in the back of the head, shoulders and legs with the ax, Gibson said.
He said Kurera later told police that Ms Perera tried to stab him.
“I just wanted to talk to her,” he told police.
The trial continues.
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