Durban - A 23-year-old man, who appeared in court on Monday with three juveniles charged with the brutal murder of 21-year-old Danielle Naidoo, intends pleading guilty.
The slightly built man, dressed in a blue tracksuit jacket and torn blue jeans, made a brief appearance in the Pietermaritzburg Magistrate’s Court on Monday, with three co-accused minors, aged 17, 16 and 14.
They are charged with the premeditated murder and gang rape of Naidoo.
The juveniles may not be identified because of their ages, while the man may only be named after he has officially pleaded to the charge of rape.
The man’s attorney, Nesan Naicker, told the court on Monday that his client wanted to plead guilty and had co-operated with police.
The state asked for an adjournment for a decision by the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions as to whether the plea would be heard in the regional or high court.
The case was adjourned to December 8.
Naidoo, who was believed to be two months pregnant, was found by police in a sewerage canal in Northdale on Friday afternoon.
Her body had been dumped in a canal in Mysore Road near Woodlands Secondary School.
Naidoo had left her father’s house in Copesville on Thursday morning and had gone missing.
According to police sources close to the investigation, the Pietermaritzburg K9 and diving units made the gruesome discovery of Naidoo’s mutilated, half-naked body after they were alerted that her bloodied clothes had been found near the canal.
Naidoo had been gang-raped before being stabbed more than 20 times. Her throat was also slit.
Naidoo’s father, Steve, told the Daily News that he could not believe what his daughter had endured before her death.
“I don’t know what to say,” the grief-stricken father said.
Naidoo leaves her father and elder brother. The family has had its fair share of tragedy. Naidoo’s mother died when she was just a child after a long battle with cancer, while her younger brother committed suicide a few years ago.
Daily News