'You feel for both of them': Mum whose husband, 49, stabbed their daughter, 20, to death outside the family home says he isn't an 'evil person' - after he pleaded guilty to killing her
- Sabrina Lekaj, 20, was stabbed to death by her father Petrit, 49, in west Adelaide
- Mr Lekaj pleaded guilty to his daughter's murder in magistrates court on Monday
- Romina Lekaj - Sabrina's mother and Petrit's wife - broke her silence after court
- She claimed her husband wasn't an 'evil person' and 'never showed any violence'
- After stabbing his daughter inside her Mercedes-Benz he turned knife on himself
- Ms Lekaj told friends that her parents were controlling and they had a 'lot of beef'
The wife of a father who killed the couple's daughter in the street just metres from their home has claimed her husband's actions came 'completely out of the blue'.
Sabrina Lekaj, 20, was stabbed to death by her father Petrit, 49, in the front seat of her Mercedes-Benz sedan in Kidman Park, Adelaide, on July 21.
Mr Lekaj pleaded guilty to his daughter's murder on Monday, less than a month on from the attack that shocked Australia.
Sabrina's mother Romina broke her silence in the wake of her husband's guilty plea to claim he was not an 'evil person'.
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Medical student Sabrina Lekaj (right) was murdered by her father Petrit (left) on the street near their Adelaide home last month
Ms Lekaj's mother Romina (right) broke her silence following her husband's guilty plea, saying he was not an 'evil person' and had 'never shown any violence' before in his life
'He never showed any violence toward any family member or anyone that I know,' Mrs Lekaj told the ABC.
Mrs Lekaj said she remained confused by exactly what had happened in the lead up to her daughter's death.
Less than a fortnight after farewelling her daughter at an emotional funeral service, the mother-of-two said the pain was still 'very raw'.
'It's a lot easier if one is the evil person and one is the victim and you know who to cry for, but you don't actually know the story and you feel for both of them,' she said.
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'I feel of course, my daughter was my daughter, it's very raw and the pain is like it will never go away.'
Mr Lekaj faced the Port Adelaide Magistrates Court on Monday and pleaded guilty to the murder charge.
Police allege that at 11.30pm on Sunday, July 21, the father and daughter were sitting in Ms Lekaj's white Mercedes-Benz sedan on the street outside their family home.
An argument ensued and the young woman was stabbed to death by her father.
Ms Lekaj's body was found inside her white Mercedes-Benz (pictured) sedan just outside their home on Kidman Avenue, in Adelaide's western suburbs, about 11.30pm on Sunday, July 21
Ms Lekaj, 20, had complained to friends about the strictness of her parents - including that her father had banned her from having a boyfriend and forced her to go to university
He then turned the knife on himself, stabbing himself multiple times in the stomach and causing himself serious abdominal injuries.
As recently as hours before her death Sabrina had complained to friends about the 'controlling' ways of her father, including that he forbid her to have a boyfriend.
'She said that he would often argue with her over little things, that he would try and control her life,' Ms Lekaj's close friend Katie Valstar told Daily Mail Australia.
'Her dad would ask her all the time if she had a boyfriend and it really left her feeling like she couldn't do anything without running it past them.
'It was very stressful for her having them on her back about everything, she told me she wanted to move out of home.
'She had been over to my place a few times, but I had never been to hers because her parents didn't even want her to have friends over.
Mr Lekaj (left) pleaded guilty in the Port Adelaide Magistrates Court to murdering his daughter on Monday. Mr Lekaj, his wife Romina and their young son are pictured with Sabrina at her 18th birthday
After graduating from Nazareth Catholic College with a score of 99.35, Ms Lekaj was accepted into the University of South Australia where she was studying classical piano performance and medical imaging
'Often when we were on the phone she would suddenly hang up because she didn't want to get caught and get in trouble for not studying.'
In texts sent to her friends in the months before her death, Ms Lekaj complained that she had been called a 'b**ch' by her parents and pressured into going to university.
She spoke openly about having 'a lot of beef' with her parents and not wanting to live under their roof any longer.
Sabrina: 'I just cried...'
Friend: 'In laughter?'
Sabrina: 'Nah I was genuinely upset... because my mum always calls me a b***h so it hit a sensitive spot'
Friend: 'Aww well you're not a b***h babe don't listen to anyone or what they have to say'
Sabrina: 'Thank you babe. Your opinion matters more than that loser... (she) shouldn't be working with kids'
In another message she encouraged the same friend not to go to university, saying it was a 'trap' and indicating that she wanted to move out of home.
Ms Lekaj told friends she 'had a lot of beef' with her parents and didn't want to live under their roof any longer. The bright student also encouraged her friend not to go to university
Ms Lekaj (left), a university medical student, had regularly confided in her close friend Katie Valstar (right) about her father's 'controlling' ways
Sabrina: 'Are u planning to go to Uni? Don't do it it's a trap.'
Friend: 'Yes babe I wanna study but I wanna make sure I'm set up money and house wise before I do cause I don't live or speak to my parents'
Sabrina: 'That really sucks. I had a lot of beef with mine but somehow I'm still living here lol'
Sabrina: 'There are a lot of things I wish I could take back'
Ms Lekaj had spent her last night alive partying with Ms Valstar at The Dog and Duck, their favourite Adelaide night spot.
It was a night out to celebrate an intense exam period for the bright medical student.
After their night out Ms Lekaj stayed at Ms Valstar's house, where she remained until about 1pm on Sunday.
When she finally hopped in her white Mercedes-Benz sedan to drive home she told her best friend she would call when she arrived.
'But she never did,' Ms Valstar said.
'Her last words were: "I love you, I'll message you when I get home".
'Knowing I was the last person to see her alive, it's really hard to come to terms with.'
Police had been searching for Ms Lekaj and her father when they discovered the pair in her car.
An hour earlier, Ms Lekaj's mother Romina had called 000 to raise concerns over her daughter's safety.
Ms Lekaj's parents are understood to have immigrated to Australia from Albania and worked as real estate developers.
They had recently sold their flashy three bedroom home for $590,000.
Ms Lekaj's younger brother Pyrrhus, 11, paid tribute to his 'beautiful big sister' during an emotional funeral service for her earlier this month.
Pyrrhus Lekaj, 11, the little brother of Sabrina Lekaj, bravely spoke about his 'beautiful big sister' at her funeral service on Wednesday
There was no mention of the tragedy during her funeral with her family, instead just reflecting on the good times.
'The last thing she said was 'I love you and I'll see you later',' her brother Pyrrhus said.
'She was very smart and always influenced me to become more than what I am, to help me with my studies and become successful in life, because that's what she would want.
'My sister was very loving and caring, we always went everywhere together. We used to go to the shops, the park,' he said.
'We used to hang out in each other's rooms and watch TV together. We used to vent a lot and talk to each other about our problems.'
Pyrrhus Lekaj (pictured), 11, said on Wednesday the last words his sister Sabrina said to him were 'I love you and I'll see you later'
Romina Lekaj (left) hugs her son Pyrrhus and is comforted by a mourner at the funeral of their daughter and sister Sabrina
During a brief telephone hearing in the Port Adelaide Magistrates Court on Monday, Petrit Lekaj's lawyer indicated he would be pleading guilty to the charge of murder.
'After a lot of consideration my instructions are that if the charge is read my client will enter a plea of guilty,' his lawyer Ben Sale told the court.
Lekaj, who is currently being held in a forensic mental health facility, is facing up to 20 years in jail.
He will return to court in November.
