Surrey man guilty of murdering partner in West Kelowna
KELOWNA — A Surrey property manager intended to kill his romantic partner or at least knew his violent actions could lead to her death, a judge ruled Thursday as she found Tejwant Danjou guilty of second-degree murder.
Danjou killed Rama Gauravarapu at the Best Western Plus hotel in West Kelowna on July 22, 2018.
Justice Allison Beames delivered the guilty verdict after giving a 100-minute summation in the secure Kelowna courtroom previously used to try the accused killers of gangster Jonathan Bacon.
In her judgment, Beames said there was no doubt Danjou killed Gauravarapu, the only thing for her to decide in the non-jury trial was whether he was guilty of manslaughter or second-degree murder.
“The difference between murder and manslaughter is intent,” she explained.
The cause of Gauravarapu’s death was listed as blunt force trauma, but she had 52 areas of injury, the judge said.
Gauravarapu suffered injuries to her face, had defensive wounds on her arms and hands, and had an eight-inch cut to her neck in what one doctor described as signs of a “frenzied attack.”
The couple had a rocky three-year relationship with several previous accounts of violence committed by Danjou against her.
Danjou was described as a jealous partner who accused Gauravarapu of having affairs.
A doctor for the defence said he had “delusional disorder jealousy type,” among other mental issues, which included a drinking problem.
On the day of the murder, the couple spent many hours at Mission Creek winery, which ended in arguments and Danjou getting a separate room back at the hotel.
Later, they were in the same room when staff received noise complaints, particularly from the people in the room below.
A staff member who went to check noticed blood on Danjou’s clothes and Gauravarapu
on the floor with a swollen face. Police were called.
“The attack on Miss Gauravarapu was prolonged and involved significant application and force, causing 52 separate areas of injury, most to her head and neck. The attack commenced before (the employee’s) first attendance at the door, continued until it was interrupted by (the) second attendance at the door, and resumed,” Beames said in her ruling. “There is abundant evidence that show Mr. Danjou acted with purpose and foresight.”
Danjou again showed intent after he fled the hotel room and travelled a considerable distance on foot before hiding in a dumpster where he was caught, Beames said.
“His route once he left the hotel was not aimless, but rather was logical. All of the evidence of Mr. Danjou’s conduct before and after the events, show that he was acting purposefully and in a cogent manner.”
The defence said he was intoxicated, but “I am satisfied Mr. Danjou was not intoxicated or impaired to the degree that it affected his ability to understand and foresee the consequences of his assault on Miss Gauravarapu.”
Sentencing for Danjou was set for Sept. 14.
After a brief consultation with her client, Danjou’s lawyer said he wants to appear at the sentencing by video from his jail.
About a half-dozen family and friends of Gauravarapu were in the courtroom for the verdict.