‘Coward to the end’
Ex son-in-law told to ‘rot’ in grave for ruining so many people’s lives
FOR the three women who married Sunesh Manilall, things ended up really badly – one slain while carrying her 18-month-old toddler in her arms; another languishing in prison for the rest of her life; and the third now a widow.
The common factor in all this was not only the men hired to wipe out the young mother of two for R10 000 – but also Manilall, a Howick businessman fingered as the mastermind.
But while his co-accused got their comeuppance, Manilall had managed to bide his time. Until Monday, when he knew his prison cell was beckoning.
Eleven years after his wife of 10 years, Monika, was murdered, and seven years after he was found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment, Manilall, 44, took his father’s gun and shot himself in the head outside their home. He was declared dead on the scene. While his second wife, Mumtaz Osman, whom he had met while she worked as a prostitute, sounded emotionless in prison, her mother was elated, hoping he “rots” in his grave.
“I don’t want his soul to rest in peace; he needs to pay because he ruined so many people’s lives,” Dilshaad Rashid told POST yesterday.
“I only feel bad for his ex-wifes’ family and their two children.”
Rashid said she had broken the news of Manilall’s death to Osman.
“She just kept quiet and continued to talk like normal. When I asked if she had anything to say, she said ‘no comment’.”
Manilall has been escaping jail time for seven years, after he was found guilty in 2010. He appealed the outcome in various structures, including the highest court in the land, the Constitutional Court.
National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Natasha Kara said that after the court dismissed his application for leave to appeal, a notice of surrender was issued on Monday afternoon. It was to have been served to his attorney yesterday morning (Tuesday).
“If served, the accused would have 48 hours to hand himself over to start serving (his) sentence,” she said.
Manilall had been found guilty of orchestrating the murder of his wife.
Two of the hit men involved died shortly afterwards and another is serving a life sentence, while a fourth accused turned on the others as a witness for the State.
Osman and Mboniseni Mbatha have been serving life sentences for the gruesome February 2006 murder.
Monika’s family, too, are happy that her killers are all paying the price for snuffing out her life.
Said her brother, Suren Ramjas: “Finally justice has been served, although he took the coward’s way instead of seeing through his sentence. We waited 11 years for this and it’s sad my parents never got to see Monika’s murderer get what he deserved.”
Ramjas said they were informed about Manilall’s death on Monday night by mutual friends.
“(His) family haven’t called us; we don’t really have contact with them.
“We received a call from a friend who lived nearby and saw lots of commotion at the home and went to investigate.
“We were later called between 8.30 and 9pm,” he said.
Ramjas added that once the funeral and other rituals were completed, he would be meeting with Manilall’s family to discuss the future of Monika’s children.
“The girls are 17 and 12. We haven’t spent time with them in three years now because he (Manilall), would not allow it.