Forever young

By Lia Bichel
THE grieving family of a murdered Hallam toddler say they will forever remember her loving nature and cheeky attitude.
Yazmina, also known as Mimi or Mina, was due to turn three-years-old last Tuesday, less than one week after she was found stabbed to death in grassland at Greenvale in the early hours of Thursday, 18 November.
Her mother Rachelle D’Argent, 24, from Hallam and grandmother Micheline D’Argent from Narre Warren celebrated Yazmina’s birthday at Lysterfield Lake Park on the weekend and again on Tuesday with her friends at crèche.
Micheline said she and Rachelle thought it was a positive move to take a cake to Yazmina’s friends at the crèche but said the day was extremely difficult for the family to bear.
“It’s very bad,” she said on Tuesday.
“We have all her gifts here that she wanted. She used to say ‘Mummy, I want that’ and we told her if she a good girl, she will get it.”
Micheline said the tragic death had caused severe heartache for the family.
“(On Thursday last week), at 2am I got a phone call from the police. They said can you come help your daughter,” Micheline said.
“I knew there was something wrong. It is terrible. We can’t sleep, we can’t eat. We have a coffee and a smoke and that is all we do.”
Micheline, who moved to Australia from Mauritas 26 years ago, said Yazmina used to confess her love to her grandmother in French. Micheline said Yazmina shared that love with her mother, cousins and friends at crèche.
“She used to say I love you Grandma in French, then ask me for her bottle. She was friendly, very intelligent for her age, it was amazing,” Micheline said.
“She was a cheeky girl. Always smiling. The only time she would cry is when you would wash her hair – she didn’t like water.
“She loved riding her bike, dancing and she sang Lady Gaga songs from beginning until end.
“But I will never hold (Yazmina) again or hear her voice again.”
Homicide Squad detectives charged 24-year-old Meadow Heights man Ramazan Acar with one count of murder on Thursday last week.