Wife murder accused to appeal after bail is denied

DURBAN businessman Gonaseelan Naidu, who has been accused of plotting the kidnapping and murder of his wife, hung his head in the dock of the Durban Magistrate’s Court after his bail application was refused yesterday.

Naidu, a former policeman, has been charged with kidnapping and conspiracy to commit murder in connection with the killing of his wife last October.

Magistrate Vanitha Armu said the interests of justice outweighed Naidu’s circumstances, including that he had several ailments and that he was on a “cocktail of drugs”.

She was satisfied that there was a prima facie case against Naidu and said the State’s evidence suggested that he was the “mastermind” behind the murder. She also said the murder had induced a sense of “shock and outrage” in the community.

Naidu’s wife, Nalin, was kidnapped and her body was found dumped in Shongweni on October 29 last year.

The court heard during the bail application that Naidu had allegedly plotted his wife’s murder twice before she was killed.

Investigating officer Rajan Govender testified that in the first attempt on her life in 2006, Nalin was shot several times outside her son’s school.

But she forgave her husband and testified on his behalf, which led to his receiving correctional supervision and a four-year suspended sentence for her attempted murder.

A second attempt was to be made last year, but the “hit man” could not go through with the plan and told police he had tried to counsel the couple.

The men who carried out the murder, Zwelakhe Maphumulo and Gcina Magwaza, who pleaded guilty and are serving lengthy jail terms, have both implicated Naidu as the man who ordered the hit.

The men said they had met Naidu to discuss the plan and had been paid R15 000 each after the murder.

Naidu’s attorney, Siven Samuel, argued that his client would plead not guilty to the charges against him and should be granted bail.

He said Naidu’s three pharmacies would suffer if he was in jail and his client had several medical problems that required constant attention.

Samuel said his client would appeal against the judgment. He asked that Naidu be sent for an assessment to determine whether he should be kept at Westville Prison’s hospital pending his trial.

The case was adjourned to July 28.