Drama as 2 jailed for killing doctor
‘Justice has prevailed’-- father
THERE was high drama in the Pietermaritzburg High Court on Thursday after two hitmen were convicted and jailed for life for executing a prominent doctor on May 13, 2013.
Brian Treasurer, 55, a former policeman, and Mfaniseni Wiseman Nxumalo, 37, appeared shell-shocked when Judge Anton van Zyl sealed their fate for killing Dr Bhavish Sewram, 33, outside his surgery in Chota Motala Road.
The judge said the evidence of self-confessed hitman, Sabelo Dlamini, who was jailed for 25 years after he earlier pleaded guilty to killing Sewram, as well as the CCTV footage at the Fusion Lounge, which showed Treasurer parking his Mazda 323 in the parking lot there and Nxumalo alighting from the vehicle a few minutes before the murder, contradicted the accused’s versions that they had nothing to do with it.
After Judge Van Zyl convicted the pair and said court would resume after the lunch break, Treasurer left the dock and was at the exit door when the court orderly politely informed him that since he was convicted of murder, he had to make his way to the grille.
The reaction of the orderly scuttled any plans Treasurer, represented by attorney Bob Bahadur, had of having his last lunch outside the walls of Westville Prison.
When Treasurer returned to the dock to go to the grille, he stopped for a few minutes and removed his neck chain, watch, some items from his wrist, wallet and even his spectacles and handed them to a relative.
A woman, believed to be his girlfriend, on seeing him removing his chain and other items, wailed in the by then almost empty court.
She was consoled by the equally stunned relatives.
More drama followed after the final leg of the trial resumed after lunch.
It was only when the judge imposed a life sentence each on the two men, denied them leave to appeal and dismissed the bid by Treasurer to have his bail extended, that the accused got the message that if one does the crime – in this case murdering the doctor, for which R12 000 changed hands – one must be prepared to do the time in prison. The men looked shattered.
Judge Van Zyl said the evidence showed that Treasurer carried out the hit at the behest of Pietermaritzburg tycoon, Rajive Soni, whom the judge said was the principal.
The State alleged that Soni was furious with Sewram because he suspected he was having an affair with his wife.
Soni’s part-heard, separated trial is expected to resume on Monday.
Sewran’s father Parmanand congratulated State advocate Johan du Toit for doing a sterling job. The retired principal said he and his wife Nalini were pleased that their son’s killers got life sentences.
“Justice has prevailed,” he said.
“Bhavish was the live wire in my family.
“Our faith in the justice system has been restored.
“My wife and I thank the investigating team, Du Toit (the State advocate) and the judge for giving us some form of closure.
“It won’t bring our son back but has ensured that Bhavish’s killers will be in prison for years to come.”
The doctor’s wife, Yuvadia, said she took solace from the fact that she was a step closer to establishing the truth and to obtaining justice for her family.
She said the killers were monsters and were motivated by greed and money.