Fugitive’s family offers reward for capture

The most recent photograph of fugitive Azeem Yunus, who has been on the run since May 2010.

The most recent photograph of fugitive Azeem Yunus, who has been on the run since May 2010.

Published Feb 19, 2014

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Durban - The estranged relatives of convicted murderer Azeem Yunus are offering a R20 000 reward for anyone with information on his whereabouts that will lead to his arrest.

Yunus, 40, has been on the run since May 2010 after he failed to turn up at the Pietermaritzburg High Court to be sentenced for his crimes.

He was out on bail of R10 000 at the time, pending his sentencing.

Yunus, an Estcourt businessman and father of three, was found guilty of killing Vinod Ramsarup, 31, and the attempted murder of Sara Sathar and her 8-year-old daughter in a drive-by shooting on the N3 in May, 2007.

The three came under fire as Ramsarup was driving Sathar and her child to the New Prison in Pietermaritzburg to visit her son Shuaib who had been convicted of the murder of Yunus’s sister Safia Asmal, 20.

Asmal’s father and Shuaib’s father, Asgar, are first cousins.

Sathar was shot 11 times and her daughter was grazed by three bullets. Both survived, but Ramsarup was hit in the head and died at the scene.

Yunus had pleaded not guilty, claiming he had shot at Sathar in self-defence. Sathar denied she was carrying a gun and said she believed Yunus wanted to kill her to avenge his sister’s death.

Shuaib Sathar was found guilty of the murder of his second cousin, who was 18 at the time.

Asmal’s murder shocked her family and the Estcourt community, and precipitated a family feud.

The young married woman had been savagely murdered, with medical evidence indicating she was stabbed 13 times, her throat slit and her skull fractured.

To date Shuaib has served nine years of his sentence at Westville Prison and still maintains his innocence.

Shuaib’s father, Asgar Sathar, who is offering the reward for information on Yunus, said that he believes it is extremely unfair that while his son sits in prison, Yunus remains a free man.

“I have had to relocate my wife and daughter because we are living in fear of this man,” Asgar said.

He explained that Yunus had been seen by other relatives in the Durban area, but upon informing the police in Estcourt, nothing was done.

“We have been pushed from pillar to post, trying to get the police to act on the information, but it never happened. Now we have no other options but to offer this reward,” he said.

Asgar said that his daughter, who is now 14 years old, has been severely traumatised by the shooting and still attends counselling.

“This incident has torn my family apart, and yet this man (Yunus) is allowed to roam free. This is not justice,” he said.

Police spokesman Captain Thulani Zwane confirmed that Yunus was at large.

“A warrant is out for his arrest. Police will follow up any information regarding his whereabouts,” Zwane said.

If anyone has any information on Yunus’s whereabouts, they can contact Asgar Sathar at 084 752 9309, or Crime Stop, toll-free at 08600 10111 and report the case number 80\05\07.

The R20 000 reward will only be paid if the information leads to Yunus’s arrest.

Daily News

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