Ram death: defence calls for prosecution of State witness
THE judge in the trial of murdered Chatsworth pensioner Jinsee Ram had indicated that she wanted to hand down judgment on Friday, but this did not happen and she said she would be doing that today.
This was after Judge Mohini Moodley grilled the State on its heads of argument around the merits of the case submitted to her registrar on Wednesday.
On Thursday in court, Judge Moodley who had also received via email the defence’s heads of argument.
In February 2020 Jinsee Ram, 73, was allegedly strangled to death in her Khawarstan home during a robbery where four assailants, including her employee, entered her home after lying in wait in her garage.
Her daughter, Sangetha Prithipaul, had her head banged repeatedly on the ground, and lost consciousness at some stage. Her hands were bound and her mouth gagged with sellotape.
Bheki Msomi has been on trial in the Durban High Court charged with murder, attempted murder and robbery with aggravating circumstances.
During the trial Judge Moodley heard evidence that Msomi allegedly entered the Ram home with Simphiwe Cele, Mthethunzima “Stars” Mpepho and Luvo Mtshezane.
Cele was employed by the Ram family and was deemed unfit to stand trial and remains at a state psychiatric hospital. Mpepho, who was arrested by police, is a Section 204 State witness and Mtshezane subsequently died after having been on the run.
Msomi took the stand during the trial and led evidence to the effect that he had not known that a crime was going to be committed.
He said he had been lured there under the pretext of prospective employment.
He claims to have left the house when he realised that a robbery was in progress at the time Prithipaul was attacked.
Prithipaul was also called as a State witness. In his heads of argument Msomi’s lawyer Sipho Radebe submitted that the evidence of Mpepho and Prithipaul was contradictory.
“It should not be accepted by the court as reasonably possibly true. The Section 204 witness should not be absolved from the commission of these offences and should face the full consequences of the might of the law as he was instrumental and participated fully in the commission of the offence.
“If the court releases him, this will encourage him to continue committing crimes, knowing that he would take the easy way out by pretending that he did not participate fully in the commission of the offence.
“The defence submits that the State has failed to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt against the accused before court.”
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