Warning: This story contains distressing content.
Lauren Dickason is on trial for killing her three daughters. Photo: Pool / NZME/ George Heard
"She's done this to hurt me" were some of the first words from Lauren Dickason's husband after finding his three young daughters dead in their beds.
Dickason is on trial in Christchurch for the murder of six-year-old Liané and two-year-old twins Maya and Karla in September 2021.
She denies the charges, pleading insanity and infanticide.
The South African family had only been in Timaru for a week when the killings happened.
New work colleagues and friends gave evidence in the High Court in Christchurch on Thursday.
Cathy Cvitanich and her husband were the first people Graham Dickason rang when he found his daughters' bodies.
She broke down in the witness box when she told the court how Dr Dickason was howling as they walked down the driveway.
"Graham was sitting in the driveway against the fence. He had his coat over his head and his hands on his head ... no shoes on," she said.
"He was really crying and saying 'my babies'."
Dickason told her his wife was mad and he could not believe she had killed their children, Cvitanich said.
"He said 'she's done this to hurt me'. Then he said 'It's my fault'. I told him it wasn't his fault, that he tried to do the best for his family and give them opportunities."
Cvitanich had met Lauren Dickason four days prior at a barbecue with other South African immigrants.
Dickason appeared overwhelmed and distant, she said.
"I came away from the dinner with a very heavy heart, thinking that she didn't like the place [Timaru]."
Carin Van Heerden was also at the barbecue and said the expat families made an effort to welcome the Dickasons, giving them a gift hamper and inviting them to events.
"I could relate to Lauren in a way because she seemed conservative and quiet," she said.
"I could understand the strain she appeared to be going through and I could sense that she was trying to process a lot."
Van Heerden sobbed as she told the court she felt like Lauren Dickason had a terrible first day in Timaru.
"I explained how beautiful Caroline Bay is and that she could take the girls to the pool and Lauren seemed to force a smile and say 'OK'. I reinforced that she would enjoy being outdoors here and it was safer than South Africa."
Laetitia Smit introduced herself to the family at the school gate on Liané's first day - the day before the girls died.
Graham Dickason asked her a favour while they were speaking in Afrikaans, her statement to the court said.
"'Can you just support my wife? The two weeks [isolating] in South Africa and the two weeks in Managed Isolation and Quarantine (MIQ) broke her'."
"He used the word 'geknak' which translates to broke or cracked or snapped," she said.
Smit had spoken with Lauren Dickason online in the lead-up to their move but said she met someone completely different that day.
"It looked like a cloud was over her. It is hard to explain but she just looked like she was going through a hard time and had the weight of the world on her shoulders.
"I initially thought she was about 50 years old," she said.
At the time, Dickason was 40.
"I was shocked when I saw the photos of her when she was leaving South Africa, she didn't look like the same person," Smit said.
The teachers at the school are due to give evidence to the trial this morning.
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