Durban — An accused charged with the murder of Chatsworth pensioner Jinsee Ram was warned that should he opt to conduct his own defence again, the court would forge ahead with his trial.
This was the stern warning from Durban High Court Judge Mohini Moodley to Bheki Msomi, 42, whose trial had been expected to begin on Monday but had to be postponed because he changed his mind about conducting his own defence. He now wants a Legal Aid attorney to represent him. The matter was adjourned for Wednesday.
Msomi stands accused of murdering Ram, 73, in February 2020 in her Kharwastan home during a robbery where an undisclosed amount of cash, cellphone, laptop and other belongings were taken.
Msomi was arrested along with Simphiwe Cele, 40, some three days after the robbery. Cele, who was employed previously as Ram’s gardener, was declared mentally unfit to stand trial.
The State’s summary of facts are that Ram died on the scene with the cause of her death being later established as consistent with manual strangulation.
“The court is no place to play games. Last week you were clearly asked if you wanted legal representation so that this week a lawyer can be provided for you and we continue with the trial, your new representation could have been here today … Legal Aid will once more be directed to appoint a lawyer for you, if you misbehave or decide to represent yourself again that is the end, we will continue,” said Moodley.
Moodley explained to Msomi that he faced serious charges where if convicted for murder he could face a minimum sentence of life imprisonment.
Msomi also faces charges of robbery with aggravating circumstances and attempted murder where violence was used to induce submission on Sangetha Prithipaul, Ram’s daughter, who had been inside the house at the time of the robbery.
Speaking outside court, Prithipaul, who witnessed her mother’s murder, said the delay in the start of the trial nearly three years after her mother’s killing was frustrating.
“We have gone through so much to prepare for trial, over and above this is reliving everything emotionally. It’s very easy for him (Msomi) to just get to court and make a mockery of everything; at the end of the day the bottom line is that my mother was the most undeserving person to have had this done to her.”
She said it was evident in her community and in the Hare Krishna Temple in Chatsworth from the manner in which people spoke of her mother that she was a highly respected figure.
“It doesn’t matter to me that I was assaulted or somebody invaded my personal space, but the mere fact that you raised your finger at my mother hurts deep in my heart.
“What I have lost is really my world and I don’t expect others to understand because they have not experienced witnessing a loved one being murdered,” said Prithipaul, tearing up.
Msomi explained to the court that he would accept legal representation given that he was not assigned the same attorney who previously represented him, and that the new one did not follow in the “same footsteps” as the previous one.
Moodley told Msomi that she had no control over how attorneys behaved, adding that she also did not know how Msomi had behaved leading to the fallout between himself and his previous Legal Aid representative.
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