Manager set alight in office: accused in court
A CHATSWORTH manager didn’t have time to react when a colleague doused him with thinners and set him alight after a heated argument in his office.
Even though Rogers Naidoo’s family prayed fervently for his recovery, he died two weeks later in hospital with 70-degree burns.
Ricardo Naidoo, 44, appeared in the Durban Magistrate’s Court in connection with Rogers Naidoo’s death.
He had allegedly been on the run since the incident at a Prospecton (south of Durban) business premises on April 13, and was arrested when he attempted to return to South Africa after crossing from Zimbabwe.
The matter which is before magistrate Mohamed Motala will resume this week.
Cheryl Naidoo, wife of Rogers, said her husband “suffered a cruel death” but she and her family were relieved that the alleged culprit was arrested.
“Our prayers were answered. And we are grateful for the work done by police,” said Cheryl.
While Cheryl and her family have resigned themselves to waiting for justice to take its course, Rogers’s gruesome death still haunts them.
“My children (a 24-year-old son and daughters aged 21 and 18) and I cry daily over the death of my husband, who was a caring and loving man.
“His killer claimed Cheryl.
When she received the call about the attack on her husband at his workplace, Cheryl said she panicked, but when she saw Rogers, she was “shattered”.
“My children and I were shocked with my husband’s condition.
“He was covered in burns from his head to around his knees.
“How could anyone do that another person?”
Cheryl was able to converse with her husband at the hospital.
“He said it happened so quickly.” She said her husband told her he had a heated argument with Ricardo in his office.
To his complete surprise, Ricardo allegedly returned soon after they argued and threw a large quantity of thinners on Rogers, before igniting it and running away.
“When my husband got out of was heartless,” to Ricardo Naidoo, who was arrested after being on the run.
the office he was engulfed in flames, some of his colleagues helped to extinguish the fire.
“He kept on saying, phone my wife, phone my wife.”
During his stay at the Chatsmed Hospital in Chatsworth, Rogers was kept in the intensive care unit.
“Doctors always told me I should pray because Rogers was in a critical condition and there was nothing they could do.
Cheryl said during her conversations with Rogers he always held her hands and gave her and her children words of encouragement.
“He knew that I was not strong emotionally so he kept assuring me that he would be fine.”
Rogers returned from surgery on April 16 on a ventilator and remained in a coma until he died on April 27.
Cheryl said a post mortem report indicated the cause of death to be “collapsed lungs” due to the fumes he had inhaled when he was set alight.
“My husband was the breadwinner.
“I’ve been robbed of a husband and my children have been robbed of a father. We are struggling to move on with life,” she said. family’s