A week after her daughter was stabbed at the Australian National University in Canberra, Fiona Coffey said she is still “going on adrenaline and still numb,” at facing the fact her child, Ilysha Perry, will likely never be the same.
Perry remains in Canberra Hospital’s intensive care unit in a serious but stable condition.
Her accused attacker Alex Ophel, 24, has been charged with two counts of attempted murder after police alleged he stabbed two women and assaulted two men at ANU on September 18.
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Coffey had just spent the weekend in Canberra with her daughter before driving back to Batemans Bay on the NSW coast, two hours away.
Hours after getting home, she received the fateful call informing her that Ilysha had been stabbed and was fighting for her life.
“Not my precious baby,” was the only thing going through her head, Coffey said.
“Shock, disbelief, we didn’t know whether she was going to survive or not, so that was the worst part for me,” she told reporters at Canberra Hospital on Monday.
“I just dropped everything, got in the car and drove straight there.
“I feel pretty lucky that she had hung on that long to see me.”
Grateful her daughter was still alive, Coffey thanked the community and her other five children for their support
But whether the 20-year-old arts student would make a full recovery was still unknown a week later.
“She’s going to have some serious long-term issues but hopefully, she’ll recover,” Coffey said.
“But she’ll never be the same.”
Despite being a private person, Perry was also described as the “quieted, loveliest girl you’d ever meet”.
“We’re all devastated, but she’s a bit better today, so that’s a good day,” her mother said.
Ophel has also been charged with two counts of assault and one count of possessing an object to be used to kill over the alleged incident at the university.
Police allege that on September 18 he hit a male student on the head with a frying pan before the victim fled the scene and then stabbed one female student and then chased a second woman before stabbing her.
It’s alleged he then approached a second male student and also struck him with the frying pan.
Despite Ilysha’s ordeal and the arduous recovery facing her, Coffey had a defiant message for other students.
“ANU is a safe place … don’t let fear stop you from reaching your dreams and don’t let that fear change the path that you’re on,” she said.
“Be brave, be strong, be heroes like Ilysha.”
Ophel will reappear before the ACT Magistrates Court on October 17 after a mental health assessment.
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