Fiji travel ban for NZ couple follows deaths
A Kiwi couple at the centre of a high-profile investigation into the deaths of five family members in Fiji are still banned from returning to their Christchurch home, despite no charges being laid by local authorities.
Fiji police still have the passports of Mohammad Raheesh Isoof and his partner Sangita Devi, who are both Fiji citizens but hold permanent residency in New Zealand.
Fiji authorities served the couple with a stop departure order, banning them from leaving the country.
The couple are main persons of interest in the deaths of Nirmal Kumar, 63, his wife Usha Devi, 54, their daughter Nileshni Kala and her daughters Sana, 11, and Samara, 8, who were found dead in Fiji’s Nausori Highlands on August 26.
It is unclear how long they will be barred from leaving the country but Fiji lawyers Stuff spoke to say stop departure orders can be indefinite.
The couple were held for 48 hours for questioning the week after the bodies were discovered. Police sought to keep the couple in custody, but a court denied their request.
But on August 29 a magistrates court granted a police application for a stop departure order. The order prevents an individual from leaving a country, pending a police investigation.
Local lawyers say Isoof and Devi can apply to the magistrates court for the order to be lifted, but usually a stop departure order ends once a police investigation is completed.
Munsami Chetty, lawyer for Kamal and Devi, said his clients were co-operating with police.
‘‘My clients are co-operating fully with police and they have chosen to remain in the country while police do their investigations,’’ Chetty said.
On September 1, police spokeswoman Ana Naisoro told The Fiji Times the two remained persons of interest in the case.
According to information given to The Fiji Times, the couple are not allowed to leave their Legalega home in Nadi without informing police first. All their travel documents remain with police.
Since the discovery of the bodies, Fiji police have refused to respond to Stuff’s requests for updates.
Fiji Immigration has also failed to respond to Stuff’s requests for information on how long the stop departure order is valid for and how long the couple’s passports can be legally held.
After his initial comments, Chetty added that his clients had instructed him not to talk to the media.
In an earlier interview with Stuff, Devi said the pair had been wrongfully accused of causing the deaths of their ‘‘good friend’’ and his family.
Devi said Nirmal Kumar was a caretaker who looked after their Legalega house when they were in New Zealand.
‘‘We couldn’t go to our friends’ funerals,’’ Devi said. ‘‘It’s not just their loss, it’s our loss too.’’
Devi said she and Kamal could not wait to get back to their Christchurch home.