Najwa 'conspiracy victim'

2008-10-21 14:42

Verashni Pillay

Cape Town - Murder accused Najwa Petersen has been the victim of conspiracy, her lawyer said in closing arguments on Tuesday at the Cape High Court.

Johan Engelbrecht, SC, said Petersen, who stands accused with three others of murdering theatre and music legend Taliep Petersen, was treated like a suspect "from the word go".

She was fetched by police late at night from Gordon's Bay shortly after the murder and extensively questioned at Bellville South police station.

There she was confronted by family friend turned state witness Fahiem Hendricks, who at first said they had been having an affair to explain several phone calls between them. Petersen agreed after a "body language communication" from Hendricks according to Engelbrecht, quoting the investigating officer's earlier testimony.

Engelbrecht claimed several of her constitutional rights were violated in the process.

These include her right to be informed of the charge against her, the right to remain silent and her right to have an attorney present during questioning.

Questioned as suspect

But Judge Siraj Desai said a conspiracy involving the police investigating team, Hendricks and co-accused Jefferson Snyders and Waheed Hassen was "a large" one.

Engelbrecht took issue with police disbelieving Petersen's first version of events and taking a second, more detailed statement.

"Why was that wrong?" he asked of the police's method of questioning. "You don't want to cut them off at the knees... Otherwise crime would be more endemic than it is in this country."

But Engelbrecht insisted the wealthy businesswoman was "not interviewed as a witness but as a suspect".

Desai said Engelbrecht was "latching on to issues which are not the real issues in this case".

Closing arguments started on Monday after evidence was wrapped up on August 21 in the trial of Petersen and three others.

Petersen, dressed in a dark green suit jacket and matching headscarf with white polka dots, sat in the dock alongside her co-accused Snyders, Abdoer Emjedi and Hassen.

State prosecutors Shireen Riley and Susan Galloway claim that Petersen masterminded the murder and hired the three.

Engelbrecht maintains it was a botched robbery by the three and that Petersen was framed by Hendricks, who owed her R240 000 for diamonds she had given him to sell for her.

He pointed to discrepancies in Hendricks' testimony including Petersen's reasons for the murder and the date he allegedly received a R70 000 payment for the hit.

- News24