By Masood Boomgaard
Startling revelations that the Merebank businessman accused of faking his own death was an avid gambler with a penchant for roulette and poker, betting up to R50 000 a game, emerged in the Pinetown magistrate's court.
Sundraganen Chetty and his cousin, Dayalan Reddy, stand accused of the murder of 60-year-old Bharath Lutchman, whose charred body was found in Chetty's Nissan clubcab bakkie on October 7. They appeared in court on a bail application.
Both have been charged with murder and defeating the ends of justice. The magistrate adjourned the bail application until Monday.
The two co-accused appeared tired in court following a week in police custody
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The gallery was noisy throughout the day's proceedings and police and court security struggled to maintain order.
Family and friends of Lutchman were heard taunting the two accused.
Some had to be removed from the court by police during the many interruptions in Advocate Ray Naidoo's plea for the release of his client, Chetty, on bail and his questioning of investigating officer Inspector Ramesh Ramdeen.
In his presentation of evidence during the hearing, Ramdeen described the events leading to the arrest of Chetty and Reddy and how the pair had allegedly attempted to fake Chetty's death.
He also provided character insight into Chetty, saying investigations had revealed that he was an avid gambler with a liking for roulette and poker.
Ramdeen said it was not uncommon for Chetty to bet up to R50 000 on a game of poker.
He said further investigations had revealed that despite assets amounting to R7-million, Chetty's butchery, which at one time had an annual turnover of R19-million, had reported losses of R30 000 a month over.
Ramdeen said the pressures of Chetty's financial situation had contributed to his carrying out the alleged murder.
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