Anni: the day a dream died

A bouquet of dried roses lies at the scene where Anni Dewani's body was found.

The flowers, like her, were once vibrant and striking.

But a year later, the flowers serve as a stark reminder to Khayelitsha residents of a moment of brutality.

It is where the Swedish-born Anni's body was removed from a car.

It is here that a story that reads like a crime thriller unravels: a young bride arriving on her honeymoon in Cape Town, and a bereaved bridegroom who is later fingered as the mastermind of her murder.

The story of Anni and Shrien Dewani would allegedly involve local hit men, a police commissioner who had to apologise for his monkey comments, a highly paid publicist and an accused who still fights extradition to South Africa.

The story starts - like a typical romance novel - with young British millionaire Shrien Dewani reportedly flying his Swedish-born girlfriend Anni to Paris, where he proposes to her with a £25000 diamond engagement ring balanced on a red rose.

Four months later, they a re married in a Hindu ceremony in India and then travel to Cape Town for their honeymoon in November.

The news of Anni's murder cast a deep shadow over other crimes in South Africa.

The tragedy of a beautiful foreign bride, killed in a South African township, spread across the globe, with British tabloids particularly gorging themselves on the country's violent crime.

Initially cast as a hijacking gone wrong, the murder took a turn when Dewani was arrested in the UK after shuttle operator Zola Tongo implicated him in the murder.

Tongo confessed that Dewani had asked him to hire hit men to kill his wife and offered R15000 for the murder.

Tongo said he hired Xolile Mngeni and Mziwamadoda Qwabe to carry out the hit. Tongo is serving an 18-year sentence, while Dewani continues to deny his involvement .

Though it might be a year since her death on Monday, Anni's family is still searching for answers. Tongo says he, Dewani, Mngeni and Qwabe know exactly what happened that night.

Speaking from his home in Sweden this week, Anni's father, Vinod Hindocha, says it has been a terrible year.

"It's so difficult to express, we thought things would change and make us forget.

"As they say, time heals all wounds, but this is totally the other way around. It gets deeper and deeper. We can't cope with this; we need closure."

It has not been easy for the alleged hit men's families either.

Mngeni's grandmother, Zanyiwe Mngeni, 65, says her grandson's troubles have impoverished her. She is also inundated by journalists.

Mngeni became ill while in custody and medical reports handed in to court earlier this year showed he had developed a malignant brain tumour.

"He is slowly recovering, though I don't know what's wrong with him. It will be a year since the incident they are being accused of took place and it has not been easy," says Zanyiwe Mngeni.

Qwabe's mother, Nowi, says: "I'm not ready to talk about this case, it is very sensitive. The law will take its course, but I wish it could come to an end."

In March, Tongo's confession guided Anni's parents, Vinod and Nilam Hindocha, during an emotional journey as they retraced the final steps their daughter took on her tragic honeymoon.

They went back to the chair on which she sat while having her last meal with her husband at the Surfside restaurant in Strand on November 13. They drove back to Guguletu, where Tongo alleged he and Dewani faked the hijacking.

And finally, they went to Khayelitsha, where her body was found with a bullet wound to the neck in the back of Tongo's car. The family conducted a short ceremony and laid fresh roses.

This week, in the area where her body was found, life went on as usual. Many had forgotten the spotlight into which they were thrust this time last year.

In Guguletu, Mzoli Ngcauzele, owner of Mzoli's, says the township had shaken off the negative publicity it received after the murder and business had picked up.

Andrew Morton, owner of the Surfside restaurant, says his business has not been negatively affected.

"Only initially, because there was a lot of press. A lot of people came here, they wanted to see the table she sat at. The family also came, but other than that, nothing has changed," he said.

For actress Andrea Dondolo, known for her role as Nandi in the TV drama Home Affairs, whose house is situated a few metres from where Anni's body was found, it remains an emotional issue.

"I still have a memory of that morning. This will never stop haunting me until this case comes to an end," she said.

"Meeting Anni's parents was like meeting her in second person. Her mother was so vulnerable and I ask myself, if this didn't happen to her, what would her life be like?"

Mngeni and Qwabe have been charged with kidnapping, aggravated robbery, murder and illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition. The indictment states that they robbed Anni of her Giorgio Armani watch, white gold and diamond bracelet, handbag and BlackBerry phone - all estimated at R90000.

Mthunzi Mhaga, spokesman for the National Prosecution Authority, says Dewani's extradition appeal could delay the trial further.

And until this trial finally ends, it is likely that the faded roses will remain as a symbol of loss and heartache, and a tribute to a young woman who came to South Africa for adventure, only to find death.