Durban - Triple murder accused Mogamberry “Rajen” Kandasamy was served with an indictment on Tuesday and will appear in the Durban High Court in November for a trial date to be set.
Kandasamy, 45, stood briefly in the dock of the Chatsworth Magistrate’s Court. He arrived with his brother, Yoganathan, with whom he is staying, and left soon after his appearance.
He is accused of killing his wife, Versha “Mala” Kanda-samy, 41, his son, Megandran, 17, and his 18-year-old daughter, Melarisa, in December at their home in Moorton, Chatsworth.
He faces three counts of murder. According to the indictment, Kandasamy and his wife were experiencing marital discord before the murders.
“During the early hours of Sunday, December 29, the accused and Mala returned to their residence after spending the night out with friends and relatives,” the indictment read.
“(Their children) were at home. After Mala had gone to bed, the accused armed himself with two wooden (Indian traditional) maces and proceeded to her bedroom where he struck her repeatedly on her head, fatally injuring her.
“At some point during this attack, (the children) entered the bedroom. The accused then struck them repeatedly on their heads with the wooden maces, fatally injuring them too. He then fled the scene.”
According to a post-mortem report, the cause of death for each of the three deceased was blunt force injuries to the head.
Among the list of 17 witnesses are the investigating officer, Sergeant Rama Moodley, from the Chatsworth SAPS, Dr Lionel Charles from the Pinetown Medico-Legal mortuary, and the Kandasamys’ neighbour, Oliver Munderamuthu.
Kandasamy was in custody for six months before his release on R10 000 bail in July.
While in custody, he was sent for mental observation and various assessment reports concluded he was mentally fit to stand trial.
During his bail application, he claimed he suffered amnesia and had no recollection of the murders. Kandasamy believed he was drugged by the perpetrators of the crime. He was at his mother’s house when his brother told him his wife and children had been murdered.
He said he was traumatised by the news and contacted the police when he was told they were looking for him.
He was then arrested.
He had also stated he wanted to hire a private investigator in preparation for his trial, and to find the real culprits, as he believed the police had rushed their investigation and claimed they were biased.
Kandasamy’s bail was extended until November.
Speaking outside court, Kandasamy’s attorney, Siven Samuel, said his client had not been able to hire a private detective because of financial problems. “His family are investigating and have come up with leads. We hope to get in a private investigator to follow-up on these leads.”
A few members of Versha’s family were at court on Tuesday, and her uncle, Nathan Manthree, who lives in Joburg, said her family from Gauteng would come down for the trial once a date had been set.
Daily News