EXCLUSIVE
A woman who nearly died in a random axe attack has launched a GoFundMe appeal for the slain mum-of-three who was allegedly murdered in a grisly sword attack last week.
Annette Kiss, 53, allegedly died when new housemate Benjamin Art, 42, attacked her with a sword, meat cleaver, and claw hammer last Thursday at their Russell Lea share house in Sydney’s west.
When police arrived, they allegedly found Art lying on Ms Kiss’ body with the sword in a harrowing scene that has devastated first responders.
Now family friend Sharon Hacker has launched a GoFundMe for Ms Kiss’ family after revealing she is close friends with mum-of-four’s eldest son.
But she is united in grief with the family after experiencing her own terror attack seven years ago when a crazed trans woman tried to chop her head off with an axe.
Ms Hacker was buying milk at an Enmore service station in Sydney’s inner west in 2017 when she was set upon by the mentally ill attacker in a horrific scene compared to a Quentin Tarantino movie.
Evie Amati, now 31, had set out to murder three strangers when she launched an attack on a man in the service station, striking him across the face.
‘She [then] turned immediately around to me and with both hands, came through and struck me at the back of the head,’ Ms Hacker revealed after the attack.
Annette Kiss, 55, was allegedly murdered by her new housemate on Thursday morning
Benjamin Art (pictured) has been charged over the alleged violent murder of his housemate
Ms Hacker, who has dreadlocks, said she was told by authorities that her thick braided hairstyle had saved her life during the vicious attack.
‘They said (I) was lucky to [still] have a head,’ she revealed. ‘They said it was like a Quentin Tarantino movie.’
A court heard Amati had been on a Tinder date before the late night attack and had felt ashamed of being transgender before taking a cocktail of drink and drugs.
She was jailed for a minimum of eight years for the attack after her sentence was almost doubled on appeal.
Now her victim Ms Hacker, 50, has launched a GoFundMe appeal for the heartbroken children of Ms Kiss, who had only moved into the share house five weeks earlier.
Police allege housemate Art ran into the house brandishing weapons, yelled at his four housemates to sit down, and started showing Ms Kiss texts from an unknown sender on his phone.
‘You’re trying to set me up, who you got to try and kill me? Who’s the chick texting me?’ he allegedly yelled, according to court documents.
‘You’re trying to set me up or get me killed, now you’re trying to kill me.’
Art allegedly held Ms Kiss by the neck before he grabbed the cleaver, while another female housemate used a chair to try to stop the alleged attack before she fled and called police.
Detectives later said it was one of the worst crime scenes they have ever encountered.
On Friday, a neighbour told Daily Mail Australia the surviving housemates are ‘too traumatised’ to return to the home and collect their things.
Days after the horror attack, Ms Hacker launched a campaign to raise funds for Ms Kiss’ three adult children – Six, Samuel and Hayely.
‘On June 27 someone took the life of Annette Kiss,’ she wrote in the appeal.
‘This was a massive shock and now her three children are working to pick up the pieces and give her a worthwhile farewell.
‘Given the nature of her death, it’s a more complex affair than usual and her kids are having to take considerable time off not only to deal with her affairs and belongings, but eventually the court cases to hopefully get justice.
‘There was no warning for her death so the family has dropped everything to make sure the funeral is done right and the sudden influx of costs are quite stressful for them.
‘Making it harder is that there’s no way to plan everything as it’s all dependent on the police and the processes.’
Annette Kiss pictured with her adult children Six (left), Samuel (right) and Hayley (back centre)
In a touching message, she told included that eldest son Six had supported her the same way after her violent attack.
‘When I was attacked he set up a Go Fund Me and your support helped me to not loose my business during my recovery.’ she said, adding.
‘Any help now is very appreciated to help with settling her affairs and assisting Six during this devastating time.’
The fundraiser has already raised $7,450 raised of $10,000.
On Friday, Art was was represented by solicitor Javid Faiz in Parramatta Bail Court on Friday. He did not apply for bail but it was formally refused.
‘My client understands the seriousness of the matter,’ Mr Faiz said outside court, according to the Daily Telegraph.
‘He’s instructed me not to make a release application today.’
His matter will return to Burwood Local Court on August 22.
Superintendent Christine McDonald said on Thursday that Art did not have a violent history, and said he was not in a romantic relationship with Ms Kiss.
