Pesticide residue ‘found in bodies’
PESTICIDE residue was found in the stomach contents of the five people whose bodies were found in the Nausori Highlands two years ago, the High Court in Lautoka was told.
This, according to police principal scientific officer Miliana Wereibaunona who took the witness stand via Skype on Thursday in the trial of Mohammed Raheesh Isoof, the New Zealand resident facing criminal charges for the death of five members of a Legalega, Nadi family.
Mr Isoof has been charged with the murder of Nirmal Kumar, 63, his wife Usha Devi, 54, their daughter Nileshni Kajal, 34, and Ms Kajal’s daughters Sanah Singh, 11, Samarah Singh, 8, in the Nausori Highlands in August 2019.
Ms Wereibaunona told Justice Thushara Rajasinghe that she conducted pesticide tests on the five victims’ blood, urine, stomach and body tissues, and tests confirmed that the stomach content had gastric content which tested positive for pesticide residue.
She said she prepared a toxicology report on September 10, 2019, on seven items referred to the Nasova Forensic Lab by Inspector Sakiusa Jitoko.
She said these included a white bottle containing clear liquid, a tomato sauce bottle containing an orange liquid, an empty bottle, tomato paste bottle containing salt-like substance and another bottle containing clear liquid.
Ms Wereibaunona said she was asked to test the presence of foreign substance in the items and after running the tests confirmed that pesticide residue had been tested on all the items.
The witness told the court that while the test gave information on the amount of pesticide, the machine, however, could not detect what pesticide it could have been.
In cross-examination, defence counsel Iqbal Khan asked Ms Wereibaunona to provide the name of the pesticide residue found in the stomach content of the five victims, to which she replied that she could not.
Another state witness identified the voice of Mr Isoof and Ms Devi in an audio recording played in court in Lautoka on Tuesday and said they were talking about witchcraft.
Rajesh Kumar, the brother of the late Nirmal, took the stand to explain and identify the voices in the recording.
State prosecutor Prenika Lata asked Mr Kumar to verify and identify the voices in the recording and he informed the court that it was of Mr Isoof, better known to the family as Kamal, and the late Ms Devi.
Mr Kumar said he was in India at the time of the incident and only came to know of the recording from police two years ago upon his return to Fiji and when he was informed to go to the Namaka Police Station.
The Legalega, Nadi man was also asked to translate the conversation and he told the court that it was about witchcraft and that they had found a red cloth and that they were not talking in their normal speaking voice.
He said Ms Devi was talking as if she was possessed because she was talking in a different manner.
During cross-examination, Mr Khan asked Mr Kumar on when he had heard about the rumours of witchcraft in the Nausori Highlands, and the witness said he learnt of it only after hearing the audio recording.
Mr Khan told the witness that he was mistaken and that he picked on Mr Isoof — trying to blame him for the family’s death.
However, Mr Kumar said he did not blame the accused for the death of his family but he could hear his voice in the recording.
He was also asked whether he practised witchcraft and how he was able to determine that the voices in the recording were talking about witchcraft, but the witness said he did not know nor practice witchcraft and only prayed at the temple.
The State will call its last witness today.