Father still believes son was murdered
CONVINCED his son would never commit suicide, Amod Sayed Bobat spent his days investigating his death only to find he had allegedly been murdered by friends.
But after two years of investigations and court appearances, Shalen Naidu, 20, John Naidoo, 27, and Brenton Moodley, were acquitted of murder in the Durban High Court.
They walked free last Tuesday due to insufficient evidence.
Bobat’s son, Zaheer, 30, who was self-employed, had left home on March 30, 2016, to visit friends at a tuck shop, and the following day his body was found hanging from a tree at Woodview Park in Phoenix.
Bobat, a businessman, said he was now angry with the justice system, the police and the prosecution in the case.
“I am still adamant that my son would never take his own life.”
Bobat said there were too many inconsistencies with the murder.
“His feet were touching the ground, he had a bust lip, his clothes had blood stains and string from a curtain blind was placed loosely around his neck. I told police this was murder, not suicide,” he said.
Bobat said he returned to the scene and bagged evidence – a water bottle and a cloth. He also handed the post-mortem results to the police.
“I enlisted the help of my police contacts to investigate and put up a R10 000 reward to anyone with information pertaining to my son’s death.
“I am just (furious) with the justice system, the police and the prosecution. “It feels like we buried my son all over again.
“I have it on good authority that someone had tampered with this case and I will not rest until I get justice.”
Bobat said he still remembered the morning when two boys informed him that they saw his son’s body hanging from the tree.
“I opened my back door, which gave me a direct view of the park, and there was my son’s lifeless body.”
The image, he said, remains etched in his mind every time he opens his back door and looks across to the park.
He said his wife, Banu, was still struggling to get over their child’s death.