Shiraz Abdool’s son is six feet under while his murderer walks freely through the streets of Joburg. Shiraz and his wife Leoni have had their lives turned upside down ever since their son Junaid was murdered in April 2011. Junaid, 21, who lived in the West Rand, was with his girlfriend and friends at the News Cafe at Emperors Palace on a Saturday night when he was murdered. An altercation with four men outside the café bar led to him being stabbed to death. The 21-year-old was stabbed in the heart with a flick knife and bled to death on the stairs of the News Cafe entrance. The man found guilty of fatally stabbing Junaid, Krishen Krishnasamy, was sentenced to 15 years in prison for murder in December last year. After spending just six months at Modderbee Prison in Benoni, Krishnasamy, 21, was granted bail by the South Gauteng High Courtafter lodging an appeal. The Abdools were not aware that their son’s killer was released, but found out on Facebook. “My daughter Yasmin had tracked down our son’s killer on Facebook and saw that he had been updating his status about being excited now that he was out of prison,” said Shiraz. “We were completely shocked. The guy didn’t even spend six months in jail and he was already out on bail. It’s absurd.” The Abdools visited a prosecutor at the high court who confirmed that their son’s killer hadbeen released from prison on bail. The Abdools said that although they haven’t completely lost faith in the justice system, they found Krishnasamy’s release “ridiculous”. “We have got CCTV footage that shows Krishen stabbing my son in the heart, what more do they need?” Shiraz asked. “The high court did not even look at all the evidence before releasing him on bail – I don’tunderstand why.” The court case dragged on for close to two years before Krishnasamy was sentenced to 15 years for murder. Shiraz says he believes there was lots of corruption and bribery which jeopardised everything. The case was initially heard at Kempton Park Magistrate’s Court before it moved to the high court. “The car guard at Emperors Palace who witnessed everything was threatened and toldnot to testify,” said Shiraz. “Also the police officer on the case changed his statement completely, so I have a feeling he was bribed.” Shiraz says life has been tough ever since their son’s murder. He says the image of his son laying in a pool of blood is ingrained in hismemory. “There’s not a single day that goes by where I don’t think of my son,” said Shiraz. “Although I would only like to remember the good times, I also remember the horrific time when I had to bag my own son before he was sent to the mortuary.” Shiraz said that all he wanted was for his son’s killer to serve his sentence so that he is taught a lesson. “Nothing will bring my son back, but the boy who killed him should pay for what he did. Fifteen years is nothing for taking a person’s life, but he should at least spend his full term after what he did.” Shiraz said he had also not received an apology from the family of his son’s killer. “We saw them all the time at court, but not once did they offer us their condolences,” saidShiraz. Correctional services spokesman Koos Gerber confirmed that Krishnasamy had been released from prison two weeks ago. “Krishen Krishnasamy was sentenced on December 6 last year and started serving his sentence,” said Gerber. “He lodged an appeal against his sentence and the court granted him bail pending the outcome of the appeal. He was released on bail last month.” - Saturday Star
Posted on: Sun, 07 Jul 2013 07:47:11 +0000
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