- Joanne Smidt is the proud Aunty of Sara-Jane
- Her niece hadn’t had the easiest life, born prematurely, her mother passed at the age of 16 and she had been in rough relationship in which she managed to escape, but she is a fighter
- One day, Sara-Jane told Joanne about her neighbour’s new girlfriend, Krystal, who sounded like bad news
- Sadly, she was right…
- Joanne Smidt, 63, from the Central Coast, NSW, shares her story below…
Scrolling through my Facebook feed, I smiled seeing my niece’s post.
It was a photo of her two young sons posing with Santa Claus.
They look so happy, I thought.
Sara-Jane, 32, hadn’t had the easiest life.
She was born prematurely, weighing only 450g.
Then when she was 16, her mum had died of cirrhosis of the liver after years of drug and alcohol abuse.
Sara had been in tumultuous relationships which she eventually managed to escape.
Throughout all those situations, she was a fighter.
Read more: My loving Dad was murdered over a garden hose
She never gave up hope of a better life and made sure she lived it to the max.
One day she told me about her neighbour’s new girlfriend, Krystal.
“She smokes ice and I think she’s a bit of a troublemaker,” she told me. “But I’ve been hanging out with her sometimes to stay on her good side.”
She said she’d let Krystal walk her dog, Ruby, and had given her food or a place to stay when she needed it.
“Just be careful,” I warned her, not liking the sound of Krystal.
I also knew Sara’s neighbour had always had a bit of a thing for her and had pursued her in the past.
On July 4, 2023, I woke to a voicemail from Sara’s aunty, Krista.
“Sara-Jane’s in hospital. She’s been attacked,” she told me.
My blood ran cold.
I called my brother, Brett – Sara’s dad – and went straight to John Hunter Hospital.
Walking into the ICU and seeing Sara-Jane unconscious on the bed, covered in wires and with her face black and blue, I burst into tears.
Then I noticed a pad that was attached to the side of her bandaged head.
No bone, it said.
“Oh my God,” I gasped, feeling bile rise in my throat.
Sara’s brother Jake, who was already there, filled us in on what had happened.
We learned that Sara’s friend, Bruce, who’d been staying with her, had come downstairs around 10.20am to find Sara unconscious on the floor, bleeding, with her skull caved in so badly her brain was exposed.
Luckily, her boys were living with their dad.
She’d been attacked with a hammer while sleeping on the couch, which was why Bruce hadn’t heard anything.
“What about Ruby?” I asked. “She would’ve attacked someone hurting Sara.”
“Police found her at Krystal Begg’s house,” Jake said. “She tried to claim it was her dog, but Bruce told them it wasn’t true.”
“Have the police arrested her?” I asked.
He shook his head.
“She’s denying she had anything to do with it,” he said. “And there’s not enough evidence to charge her.”
Sara remained unconscious on life-support for the next two weeks and Brett and I travelled every day to see her.
Doctors couldn’t tell us if she’d live or die, leaving us in anguish.
In the meantime, we received news from police.
Krystal had been arrested for another incident, where she broke into someone’s home armed with a knife.
“Animal,” I said, aghast. “She needs to be locked up.”
Luckily, this time she was charged with that offence and remanded in custody.
At first, she continued to deny her involvement in Sara’s attack, but after a month she finally admitted she did it because Sara had slept with her boyfriend.
Krystal also told police that she was devastated Sara wasn’t dead.
“Well, I got to have a bit of fun, I got to cave her skull in, didn’t I,” she said to them. “Spewing it didn’t happen properly, devo’d, considering what I did it for.”
She then told them she’d try and kill her again.
“And trust me if I get out, she’s going to be dead. I plan on having a hell of a lot more fun and that’s that,” she said.
Her comments were sickening.
As we waited for the court case, I tried to forget about Krystal and concentrate on Sara getting better.
Though she came off life support, she spent three months in intensive care, where she had a titanium plate inserted to replace her shattered skull.
They also fitted her with a shunt to enable her body to drain the fluid from her brain.
She was moved to a rehab unit so she could learn to function again, but it was a slow, agonising process.
Even when she woke up completely, it was as if the lights were on, but nobody was home.
I was grateful she couldn’t remember the attack.
As she became more alert, she said she didn’t want to know the details.
“I just want to get better,” she whispered.
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She was completely paralysed down her left-hand side and had limited movement in her right side, so was in a wheelchair. It was unlikely she’d ever walk again.
She needed 24-hour care and struggled to do basic things like cutting up her food or getting into the shower unaided.
She could no longer raise her boys, but when they visited her, they showered her with cuddles.
“Love you, Mum,” they’d both say.
“Love you, too,” she’d reply.
In February 2025, Krystal Lee Begg, 31, was sentenced to 13 years and six months jail on charges including causing grievous bodily harm with intent to murder.
Sara and I watched as she sat there expressionless, like she didn’t care that she’d destroyed a life.
It played on Sara’s mind.
“When she gets out, she’ll kill me,” she fretted.
“We’ll worry about that later,” I replied. “You’ve got 13 and a half years to live your life.”
Now, Sara’s trying to do just that.
Sara’s determined to walk someday but currently, needs a special machine to help her stand and exercise her muscles.
We’re trying to raise funds to buy one.
She’s in a supported living house now and I often take her out to the shops or the leagues club for lunch.
It’s nothing like her old life but each day, I see more of her beautiful personality creeping back.
She’s proof that bad things can happen to good people, but her heart of gold won’t give up.
To help Sara-Jane, click this link.
