Mum murdered in front of her children in brutal axe attack

Nelomie Perera's killer husband was waiting for her in the back garden

- GAIL SHORTLAND

With her husband away in Sri Lanka on business, Nelomie Perera was at their home in Melbourne, Australia, reeling from what she had just discovered.

While the man she was married to, Dinush Kurera, had been abroad looking into opening a hotel, he'd had an affair. Nelomie had already put up with so much.

The 43-year-old, who moved to Australia from Sri Lanka when she was 10, had three children - including a 17-year-old son and a 16-year-old daughter with Kurera, who was also born in Sri Lanka. They'd been together over 20 years but Nelomie had grown increasingly frightened of her husband's temper and violence.

After growing suspicious, Nelomie was told by several witnesses that Kurera had been seeing another woman during his frequent visits back to Sri Lanka. While he was still away, she decided to use the opportunity to finally leave him.

Nelomie took out a court order that stopped Kurera from entering the family home. She packed up his things and put them in a storage unit. She even sent him a message that read: "I want a divorce. I am not going to live my life afraid of you any more." Kurera denied the affair and said it was all "in her head".

Nelomie had never felt so scared. She told the police she believed her husband was capable of killing her. They helped her change the locks and gave her a personal safety watch, used by those fearing domestic violence.