“My daughter was murdered twice – once in a hotel room‚ and then in the media.”
Howdy Kabrins has been tormented by how his daughter Gaby Alban was dragged under by rumours of a drug-fuelled orgy that had gone wrong and ended in her death.
However‚ it has since come to light in court that no signs of drug abuse were found in her system‚ not even THC‚ which is found in cannabis and has featured prominently in the trial.
On July 29 2015‚ Alban was found dead in her Camps Bay hotel room in Cape Town‚ with faeces on her face and a note saying “cerote” (Spanish for “you are a piece of s***”) written in lipstick.
Her boyfriend Diego Novella‚ a wealthy trust funder from Guatemala who does not work‚ is on trial for the murder. His defence is claiming “diminished capacity” due to substances he took.
The forensic evidence from the toxicology reports dispelled the rumours of a drug fest but received far less attention than the tabloid stories that made their way around the world‚ said Kabrins.
Alban had formerly been married to a paediatrician from Yale‚ and was herself a successful business executive.
When her father flew her body back to the States for her burial‚ which was attended by over 500 people‚ he was met with the same question over and over again: The woman being described in the press was not the one they knew and had come to honour.
Novella and Alban had met at university many years ago‚ and had dated for six weeks before she broke up with him after disapproving of his drug use.
He had then intermittently come back into her life.
When she introduced him to her father‚ he was not impressed but kept it to himself.
“I met him once in Guatemala. It was just for two days. He was aggressive – even how he drove. He didn’t show me the respect of a loved one’s father. I had my thoughts‚ but I kept them to myself. I said to myself‚ ‘My daughter is no longer a child‚ it is not up to me.’”
Now‚ he wakes up at night thinking about those two days and how he had kept quiet.
“She was my baby girl‚ she will always be my baby girl. I just want to go back in time and protect her. This has torn me in half.”
Meantime‚ in the years before her murder‚ Alban’s own ill health had become her heaviest burden of all.
At first‚ she was incorrectly diagnosed with Addison’s Disease‚ and put on the wrong medication.
It later became clear she had Lyme Disease‚ a debilitating bacterial condition caused by ticks found on deer.
Frances Dupierry‚ who struggles with the disease‚ gave some insight into what Alban was going through.
Like Alban‚ it took years before the correct diagnosis was made‚ and also like Alban‚ she was debilitated by “total exhaustion” that left her helpless and vulnerable.
“I ended up in bed for months on end‚ relying on others to do everything for me‚” she recalls‚ adding that the utter loss of self-esteem made her “extremely vulnerable” to anyone who was kind to her‚ and that she made “bad‚ even devastating decisions” because she was “utterly exhausted” and “couldn’t think properly”.
“My daughter would describe waking up as if she had slept in a box or a suitcase‚ her body aching as she slowly tried to stretch out‚” he said‚ “and she was taken over by her lack of energy and anxiety attacks‚” Kabrins said.
He said the disease made her “very vulnerable” but that she really wanted to have children and this may have clouded her judgement about Novella.
When she arrived in Cape Town to meet up with him‚ she couldn’t find him and he didn’t call her.
When he finally came to the hotel where she had booked in‚ he told reception‚ “I am here to see my mother‚” instead of saying she was his girlfriend.
The two travelled to Rome for a few days and then she was murdered shortly after their return.
Kabrins said that he does not believe Novella was on drugs on that night or that drug addiction explains his behaviour.
His daughter’s passport was never found‚ her iPad had been stamped several times‚ and her phone was found hidden in the microwave.
He was “chilled” by the note that had been so neatly placed on her chest in such a scene of chaos.
“I originally had one job – to see the man on trial going to prison with no possibility of parole. But now I have two – getting justice‚ and getting the dignity of my daughter’s name back. Every day‚ I look to Lion’s Head for strength on that journey‚ and I am doing it for her and for the whole family.”
-TimesLIVE
Source: TMG Digital.
'My daughter was murdered twice'
Howdy Kabrins has been tormented by how his daughter Gaby Alban was dragged under by rumours of a drug-fuelled orgy that had gone wrong and ended in her death.
However‚ it has since come to light in court that no signs of drug abuse were found in her system‚ not even THC‚ which is found in cannabis and has featured prominently in the trial.
On July 29 2015‚ Alban was found dead in her Camps Bay hotel room in Cape Town‚ with faeces on her face and a note saying “cerote” (Spanish for “you are a piece of s***”) written in lipstick.
Her boyfriend Diego Novella‚ a wealthy trust funder from Guatemala who does not work‚ is on trial for the murder. His defence is claiming “diminished capacity” due to substances he took.
The forensic evidence from the toxicology reports dispelled the rumours of a drug fest but received far less attention than the tabloid stories that made their way around the world‚ said Kabrins.
Alban had formerly been married to a paediatrician from Yale‚ and was herself a successful business executive.
When her father flew her body back to the States for her burial‚ which was attended by over 500 people‚ he was met with the same question over and over again: The woman being described in the press was not the one they knew and had come to honour.
Novella and Alban had met at university many years ago‚ and had dated for six weeks before she broke up with him after disapproving of his drug use.
He had then intermittently come back into her life.
When she introduced him to her father‚ he was not impressed but kept it to himself.
“I met him once in Guatemala. It was just for two days. He was aggressive – even how he drove. He didn’t show me the respect of a loved one’s father. I had my thoughts‚ but I kept them to myself. I said to myself‚ ‘My daughter is no longer a child‚ it is not up to me.’”
Now‚ he wakes up at night thinking about those two days and how he had kept quiet.
“She was my baby girl‚ she will always be my baby girl. I just want to go back in time and protect her. This has torn me in half.”
Meantime‚ in the years before her murder‚ Alban’s own ill health had become her heaviest burden of all.
At first‚ she was incorrectly diagnosed with Addison’s Disease‚ and put on the wrong medication.
It later became clear she had Lyme Disease‚ a debilitating bacterial condition caused by ticks found on deer.
Frances Dupierry‚ who struggles with the disease‚ gave some insight into what Alban was going through.
Like Alban‚ it took years before the correct diagnosis was made‚ and also like Alban‚ she was debilitated by “total exhaustion” that left her helpless and vulnerable.
“I ended up in bed for months on end‚ relying on others to do everything for me‚” she recalls‚ adding that the utter loss of self-esteem made her “extremely vulnerable” to anyone who was kind to her‚ and that she made “bad‚ even devastating decisions” because she was “utterly exhausted” and “couldn’t think properly”.
“My daughter would describe waking up as if she had slept in a box or a suitcase‚ her body aching as she slowly tried to stretch out‚” he said‚ “and she was taken over by her lack of energy and anxiety attacks‚” Kabrins said.
He said the disease made her “very vulnerable” but that she really wanted to have children and this may have clouded her judgement about Novella.
When she arrived in Cape Town to meet up with him‚ she couldn’t find him and he didn’t call her.
When he finally came to the hotel where she had booked in‚ he told reception‚ “I am here to see my mother‚” instead of saying she was his girlfriend.
The two travelled to Rome for a few days and then she was murdered shortly after their return.
Kabrins said that he does not believe Novella was on drugs on that night or that drug addiction explains his behaviour.
His daughter’s passport was never found‚ her iPad had been stamped several times‚ and her phone was found hidden in the microwave.
He was “chilled” by the note that had been so neatly placed on her chest in such a scene of chaos.
“I originally had one job – to see the man on trial going to prison with no possibility of parole. But now I have two – getting justice‚ and getting the dignity of my daughter’s name back. Every day‚ I look to Lion’s Head for strength on that journey‚ and I am doing it for her and for the whole family.”
-TimesLIVE
Source: TMG Digital.
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