Murder of Anni Dewani
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Anni Dewani | |
---|---|
Born | Anni Hindocha c. 1982 Mariestad, Sweden |
Disappeared | 13 November 2010 (aged 28) Gugulethu, South Africa |
Cause of death | Gunshot to neck |
Body discovered | 14 November 2010 Lingelethu West, South Africa |
Residence | Westbury-on-Trym, Bristol, England |
Nationality | Swedish |
Ethnicity | Indian |
Occupation | Engineer |
Known for | Murder victim |
Partner | Shrien Dewani |
In his admission of guilt statement, Tongo alleged that Dewani's husband, British national Shrien Dewani of Bristol, had offered him a sum of US Dollars to murder his wife.[1] South African authorities are currently trying to extradite Shrien back to South Africa via the British legal system, while Shrien Dewani continues to claim innocence within the kidnap and murder plot. Shrien Dewani's family described the allegations of Tongo as "totally ludicrous."[2]
Contents[hide] |
[edit] Background
[edit] Anni Dewani
The Hindocha family, Hindus living in Uganda, were forced to leave the country in the early 1970s after ruler Idi Amin expelled them. Granted residence in Sweden, they settled in Mariestad, where their daughter Anni was born and raised. After training as an engineer, she joined Ericsson.[3][edit] Shrien Dewani
Shrien Dewani was born in Bristol, and raised at the family home in Westbury-on-Trym. Educated at Bristol Grammar School and the University of Manchester, he qualified as a chartered accountant with Deloitte, working in the City of London. In 2005 he resigned his position, to help found and run his families chain of PSP Healthcare old peoples homes.[4][5][edit] Marriage
Anni Hindocha visited her cousin Sneha in Luton, England in 2009, and met Shrien Dewani through mutual friends. Their first formal date was to watch The Lion King at the Lyceum Theatre in London's West End, and they then alternated their weekend meetings between Bristol and Stockholm. After gaining permission from her family, Shrien proposed to Anni at the Hôtel Ritz, Paris, in June 2010, with a £25,000 diamond engagement ring balanced on a red rose.[6] Shortly afterwards, Anni moved to Bristol to help her fiancé run his families care home business. Under her maiden name, in 2010 Anni entered Bristol's Top Model competition.[3] The couple married at the Lake Pavani resort outside Mumbai, India, on 29 October.[5] 200 guests attended the traditional three day Hindu marriage event.[7] In 2011 they were planning a civil ceremony in the UK, for friends who could not attend the Indian ceremony.[6][edit] Murder
After landing at Cape Town International Airport on 7 November, the couple took an internal flight, and stayed for four nights at the Kruger National Park.[4] On 12 November, the couple returned to Cape Town International Airport, and were then driven by Zola Tongo to the five-star Cape Grace hotel.[8]Shrien then commented to the South African Police Service and the press, that his wife had wanted to see the real Africa. They decided to traveled to Mzoli's BBQ restaurant, as recommended by chef Jamie Oliver in his magazine that year. Located in the Gugulethu township, the couple arranged to be driven there by Tongo in his VW Sharan taxi.[9]
But after dining at a restaurant in Strand, and while being driven around the township while undertaking slum tourism, Shrien stated that the taxi had been hijacked by two armed men, who removed Tongo.[5] Now held at gunpoint, the couple were driven around the township, being told by the kidnappers: "We are not going to hurt you. We just want the car."[8] After 20 minutes, at a distance of 11 miles (18 km) from the original hijacking, after being threatened at gunpoint Shrien was thrown out of the back window of the moving taxi.[10]
After Shrien flagged down a passing car and contacted the police, a police helicopter spotted the Sharan taxi abandoned 2 miles (3.2 km) away in the township of Khayelitsha.[7] At 07:50 on the morning of 14 November, Anni Dewani was found dead inside the back of the VW Sharan in Lingelethu West.[11] Severely beaten and brusied, she had suffered a single gunshot wound to her neck. Police later confirmed that Anni's Giorgio Armani wristwatch, a white-gold and diamond bracelet, her handbag and her BlackBerry mobile phone were missing assumed stolen.[12][13]
[edit] Investigation
Anni Dewani's body was taken to Cape Town hospital. Subject to a post mortem, the examination found that Anni had died from a single gunshot wound to the neck, which had severed an artery, but that she was not sexually assaulted. During this period, after being joined by members of his family, Shrien gave interviews to both the police and the press, where he commented that it was his wife's idea to visit the township and see the "real Africa".[14] On the 17 November, Anni Dewani's body was released by the South African authorities, and returned to the United Kingdom on a British Airways flight, accompanied by her husband. She was buried in Bristol in a traditional Hindu ceremony on 21/22 November.[2]The high-profile case was given to the Police Hawks investigation unit, led by Captain Paul Hendrikse.[15] On 17 November, the South African police arrested Xolile Mnguni followed two days later by the arrest of Mziwamadoda Qwabe and taxi driver Zola Tongo.[10] All three were charged on 20 November with: aggravated robbery; kidnapping; and the murder of Anni Dewani.[2] On the same day, police begin briefing local South African media that the shooting was a "planned hit," after they had arrested a fourth man, who had acted as an intermediary between Tongo and the two kidnappers.[15] They also asked Shrien to return to South Africa, to attend an identity parade.[2][13]
The day after his family hired Max Clifford as their press public relations interface, Shrien issued a press statement in which he said: "I searched high and low for my perfect partner … why would I want to kill her?" Within the statement, Shrien provides an adjusted time line account from previous media comments that he had made on the kidnapping:[2]
- The driver, not his wife, suggested the visit to the township
- He and his wife were held in the car for 40 minutes, not 20, before he was thrown out
On 25 November, Shrien's brother Preyen Dewani issued a statement saying that his brother was afraid that he would be wrongly blamed for the murder in order to save the reputation of South Africa, to protect tourism revenues.[2] Max Clifford later commented that Shrien was heavily sedated and being watched by doctors, was not a suspect in the murder, and had not been asked to return to South Africa. South African prosecutors later confirmed to local press that Shrien was not presently a suspect.[2]
[edit] Conviction of Zola Tongo
On December 3, Xolile Mnguni and Mziwamadoda Qwabe via their lawyers claimed that they were physically assaulted by police.[2] Shrien’s South African lawyer, Billy Gundelfinger, then withdrew from the pending case against the three arrested suspects,[16] and soon afterwards dropped Shrien as a client.[17]On December 7, appearing in the Western Cape High Court under a plea bargain arrangement, Zola Tongo said that Anni Dewani was "murdered at the instance of her husband," after Shrien Dewani had offered him £1,300 (15,000 Rand) to have his wife killed. Max Clifford in a press release to British media, on behalf of Shrien and the Dewani family, stated that the claims made by Tongo have "absolutely no substance."[2] Outlining both the terms of Tongo's plea bargain and the state's case, state prosecutor Rodney de Kock advised Judge President John Hlophe that: "The alleged hijacking was in fact not a hijacking, but part of a plan of subterfuge which Shrien Dewani, the husband of the deceased, and the accused had designed to conceal the true facts, to wit: that the deceased was murdered at the instance of her husband."[18] De Kock confirmed that Tongo, who had been pre-booked by Shrien's personal assistant,[19] had driven the couple from Cape Town International Airport to the Cape Grace hotel on Friday, November 12. After their arrival, Tongo alleged that he and Shrien had a conversation in the hotel lobby:[18]
“ | After we arrived at the hotel, Shrien Dewani approached me alone and asked me if I knew anyone that could 'have a client of his taken off the scene'. After some discussion with him, I understood that he wanted someone, a woman, killed. He said he was willing to pay an amount of R15,000. Shrien Dewani said he had US dollars and could pay in US dollars. After contacting a friend, we agreed that Shrien Dewani and I would be ejected from the vehicle and that the female occupant had to be killed. | ” |
Tongo was subsequently jailed for 18 years in Malmesbury prison,[20] and is expected to give evidence in the trial of Mngeni and Qwabe in 2011. Max Clifford, on behalf of Shrien and the Dewani family, again repeated that the claims of Tongo were "absolutely, 100 per cent ludicrous and deeply offensive."[18]
[edit] Extradition of Shrien Dewani
After he had surrendered himself at a Bristol police station, Shrien was arrested at 22.38 on the 8 December 2010, by police officers from the Metropolitan Police's extradition unit. They were acting under a provisional arrest warrant issued that day after being provided by evidence from the South African authorities via the High Commission in London, issued on "suspicion of conspiring with others to murder Mrs Anni Dewani on 13 November."[16][21]South Africa’s Congress of Trade Unions issued a statement: “Let us hope that the swift and efficient way in which this case has been dealt with, and the fact that it is now becoming clear that it was planned by a non-South African, will help to restore the country’s reputation.” Friends of Shrien suggested that he was being “stitched up” as a suspect, claiming that the South African authorities were trying to make the murder more complex than a tourist hijacking. Max Clifford on behalf of Shrien and the Dewani family commented: “Let the South African police contact Shrien to explain and also reveal what evidence there is to substantiate these accusations from a man who had admitted his part in a murder.”[16]
On the morning of 9 December, Shrien's British lawyer Clare Montgomery commented that "Shrien Dewani had no involvement in the death of his wife Anni."[22] Appearing that afternoon at City of Westminster Magistrates' Court, Shrien told the court that he did not consent to being extradited.[12] Ben Watson, the British lawyer representing the South African government, disclosed that Shrien had withdrawn £1,000 in cash on his Mastercard before the murder,[23] including £800 on the evening of 13 November.[24][25] Watson further alleged that Shrien claimed in conversation with the kidnappers that he had undertaken a contract killing before in South Africa, but Shrien's lawyer Montgomery denied he had ever been to South Africa before the honeymoon. The court was subsequently shown a copy of his passport, issued in 2006, confirming that Shrien had not been there in that time.[25] Shrien was then granted bail, posted at £250,000, lodged by his family. However, the Crown Prosecution Service acting on behalf of the South African authorities lodged an appeal, which meant that Shrien spent the night of 9 December in Wandsworth Prison.[12]
On the afternoon of 10 December, at a hearing at the High Court, Watson told Mr Justice Ouseley that CCTV footage from the Cape Grace hotel showed Shrien:[23]
- Meeting Tongo twice in his taxi in the carpark of the Cape Grace on 12 December, the night before the killing, when Tongo claims Shrien asked him to hire a hitmen to kill a woman
- Having a series of meetings with Tongo inside the hotel, without his Anni, in the 24 hours before the killing
- Handing Tongo a package of cash on 16 November,[15] three days after the murder, having just previously been sitting beside his grieving father-in-law, Vinod Hindoach. Tongo is then seen entering the hotel toilets, where he counted the money.[15]
Asked to comment on the case while on a visit to Limpopo province, South African national police commissioner, Bheki Cele, said: "One monkey came from London to kill his wife here. He thought we South Africans were stupid. Don't kill people here." Local legal commentators later suggested that while Cele's comments would not directly lead to defence calls for an unfair trial, the police could prejudice the case.[17] Helen Zille, the premier of Western Cape province, commented that Shrien must be extradited: “I can't believe there is such evil in the world. This evil appears to have been compounded by the abuse of South Africans.”[27] Chloe Spelling, a South African national tourist who met the couple while they were staying at the Kruger national park, said in an interview with the News of the World that the couple had acted strangely, and not like a typical just-married couple.[28]
On New Years Eve, five friends of Anni issued an open letter to Shrien via The Sun newspaper, in which they said: “You state that you are innocent of these allegations so please go back to Cape Town to prove to the South African police why they’ve got it wrong.” The letter urged Shrien to avoid engaging in a media battle, and instead focus on what happened on November 13–14.[29] The Dewani family set up a memorial fund for Anni Dewani, which they proposed would be used to build a school in her memory in India. However, on 8 January, Ashok Hindocha said in a press release that the Hindocha family had not been consulted over the plans, describing the project as a “PR campaign” to bolster Shrien’s image.[30]
On 17 January, family friend of the Dewani's Hasmukh Velji Shah appeared on BBC Inside Out West, to comment that Shrien had not ruled out returning to South Africa, if certain guarantees could be made, including local bail.[28][31] However, in the same programme, the South African Minister for Justice and Constitutional Development Jeff Radebe told the BBC "As far as we are concerned, Mr Dewani, if he comes before a competent court in South Africa, will receive a fair trial."[31] On 18 January, South African Police Commissioner, Bheki Cele, said detectives knew why Anni had been killed. Senior Investigating Officer Lt-Col Mike Barkhuizen had been sent to London to investigate both leads and further evidence, and would attend the scheduled pre-extradition hearing on 20 January, at which the South African Police would be willing to reveal the evidence should Shrien resist extradition.[32]
On 20 January, Shrien was due to appear before an extradition pre-hearing at Westminster Magistrates' Court. However, he did not attend the hearing, and the court was told by his lawyer that Shrien had been diagnosed as suffering with both an acute stress disorder and a depressive adjustment disorder by a psychiatrist. Watson, for the South African authorities, told the court that Shrien was presently facing charges in South Africa of: conspiracy to murder; murder; kidnapping; robbery with aggravated circumstances; and obstruction of the administration of justice.[33] The full extradition hearing was adjourned by the Chief Magistrate to 8 February at Belmarsh Magistrates' Court, for which an extension to Shrien's bail was granted.[34]
[edit] Media coverage
In South Africa, media coverage in the case was high from the discovery of the body. With an economy reliant on the influx of tourists, tour operators reported an immediate drop in bookings, as potential visitors were made aware of the country's high murder rate: on average, 46 per day. Secondly, concern was expressed at many levels that the killing would negate the goodwill resulting from the 2010 FIFA World Cup.[35] The assignment of the Police Hawks team and the early arrests, conviction and statement implicating Shrien Dewani only added further fuel to media coverage. Local media debate surrounds the following angles:[36]- How the character of Anni Dewani affected the view of Shrien towards his wife.
- If Shrien is guilty, whether the case is a transnational version of American murders in which white people drive to a black neighbourhoods to commit crimes?
- Racism within the British media, assuming that the South African police were incompetent. Alleged police torture also was not seen as helping the international standing of the South Africa justice system.
- The level of crime in the townships, reviving the debate which Hungarian scholar Anna Selmeczi called the "social abandonment of the poor." There had been 700 murders in the past five years in Gugulethu.
[edit] References
- ^ "South Africa honeymoon death husband 'plotted murder'". BBC News. 7 December 2010. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-11937170. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j "South Africa murder: timeline". The Telegraph. 7 December 2010. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/southafrica/8186264/South-Africa-murder-timeline.html. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
- ^ a b "Honeymoon murder: Anni Dewani profile". The Telegraph. 7 December 2010. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/8186282/Honeymoon-murder-Anni-Dewani-profile.html. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
- ^ a b "Honeymoon murder: Shrien Dewani profile". The Telegraph. 7 December 2010. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/8186487/Honeymoon-murder-Shrien-Dewani-profile.html. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
- ^ a b c Mark Hughes (16 November 2010). "Honeymoon day trip that ended in bride's murder". The Independent. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/honeymoon-day-trip-that-ended-in-brides-murder-2135058.html. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
- ^ a b David Connett (19 December 2010). "Murder of Anni Dewani: The bridegroom's story". The Independent. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/murder-of-anni-dewani-the-bridegrooms-story-2164391.html. Retrieved 2011-01-21.
- ^ a b "Bride butchered on her honeymoon". The Sun. 15 November 2010. http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/3227667/Bride-butchered-on-honeymoon-in-South-Africa.html. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
- ^ a b "Guman said "we aren't going to hurt you"... That was just a lie". The Sun. 16 November 2010. http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/3229738/Hubby-tells-of-bride-Anni-Dewanis-murder.html. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
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- ^ a b c "Honeymoon husband: Shrien Dewani arrested over wife's murder". The Telegraph. 8 December 2010. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/8187947/Honeymoon-husband-Shrien-Dewani-arrested-over-wifes-murder.html. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
- ^ a b Jo Adetunji (10 December 2010). "Police chief brands honeymoon murder suspect a 'monkey'". The Independent. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/police-chief-brands-honeymoon-murder-suspect-a-monkey-2155939.html. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
- ^ a b c d "Honeymoon murder: Shrien Dewani offered £1,300 to bride's killers, court hears". The Telegraph. 10 December 2010. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/8186101/Honeymoon-murder-Shrien-Dewani-offered-1300-to-brides-killers-court-hears.html. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
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- ^ GLYNNIS UNDERHILL (January 21, 2011). "Dewani extradition saga passes mother by". Mail & Guardian. http://www.mg.co.za/article/2011-01-21-dewani-extradition-saga-passes-mother-by. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
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- ^ a b c "'Net is closing around' Shrien Dewani, court hears". The Telegraph. 11 December 2010. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/southafrica/8194303/Net-is-closing-around-Shrien-Dewani-court-hears.html. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
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- ^ a b "Honeymoon murder: claim Shrien Dewani organised similar killing before". The Telegraph. 9 December 2010. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/8190093/Honeymoon-murder-claim-Shrien-Dewani-organised-similar-killing-before.html. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
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- ^ a b "Shrien Dewani 'may be prepared to return to South Africa for murder trial'". The Telegraph. 17 January 2010. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/southafrica/8263877/Shrien-Dewani-may-be-prepared-to-return-to-South-Africa-for-murder-trial.html. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
- ^ Nick Parker (31 December 2010). "Anni's pals: We want some answer, Shrien". The Sun. http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/3324456/Murdered-Anni-Dewani-tell-husband-to-face-accusers.html?OTC-RSS&ATTR=News. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
- ^ "School in memory of murdered bride Anni Dewani attacked as ‘publicity stunt’". The Telegraph. 8 January 2010. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/southafrica/8247194/School-in-memory-of-murdered-bride-Anni-Dewani-attacked-as-publicity-stunt.html. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
- ^ a b "Honeymoon death husband’s return ‘not ruled out’". BBC News. 17 January 2010. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-12189653. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
- ^ "South African police say they have 'motive' for Anni Dewani murder". The Telegraph. 18 January 2010. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/southafrica/8266891/South-African-police-say-they-have-motive-for-Anni-Dewani-murder.html. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
- ^ "South Africa honeymoon death man suffering from stress". BBC News. 20 January 2010. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-12227580. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
- ^ "Shrien Dewani 'suffering from acute stress'". The Telegraph. 20 January 2010. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/8271276/Shrien-Dewani-suffering-from-acute-stress.html. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
- ^ Susie Mesure (21 November 2010). "A week after honeymoon bride's murder, what can be the 'explosive revelation'?". the Indepedent. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/a-week-after-honeymoon-brides-murder-what-can-be-the-explosive-revelation-2139734.html. Retrieved 2011-01-21.
- ^ IMRAAN BUCCUS (December 21, 2010). "Race, class and the Dewani case". Mail & Guardian. http://www.mg.co.za/article/2010-12-21-race-class-and-the-dewani-case. Retrieved 2011-01-21.