Court hears of countdown before deadly boulder dropped on car

06 September 2018 - 09:51 By Jeff Wicks
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A boulder thrown from an overpass near Durban claimed the lives of Amina and Abdur Rahim Haffejee on 27 December 2017.
A boulder thrown from an overpass near Durban claimed the lives of Amina and Abdur Rahim Haffejee on 27 December 2017.
Image: Supplied

Selvan Govender‚ a Verulam mechanic accused‚ alongside two others‚ of dropping a boulder from a bridge which would ultimately kill Amina Haffejee and her brother‚ Abdur Raheem‚ had stood at the ledge counting down as their car approached.

This was the evidence of investigating officer Ivan Padayachee in the Verulam Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday in opposition to Govender’s bid for bail.

Govender‚ with his 23-year-old son‚ Nathan‚ and his employee‚ Qiniso Gumbi‚ 21‚ face two counts of murder. One man‚ who has yet to be named‚ remains at large.

The state is expected to use five witness statements as the basis for the case against the three – that together they hauled a boulder onto the bridge and dropped it on the car below.

“The four accused were seen at the bridge with a rock. Accused number one (Selvan Govender) was heard counting down 4‚3‚2‚1 and then accused number 3 (Qiniso Gumbi) and the suspect who is still outstanding dropped the rock‚” he said.

This‚ Padayachee told the court‚ was how the three had acted in common purpose.

On December 27‚ Haffejee and her seven-year-old brother‚ Abdur‚ were travelling from Umhlanga to Stanger when the rock ripped through their car windshield. It hit Haffejee and the force of impact caused her passenger seat to fly back and hit Abdur‚ who was sitting behind her.

Haffejee’s distraught husband‚ who was driving the vehicle but was unharmed‚ drove them to the nearest hospital‚ where they were declared dead.

In early January‚ a reward of R250‚000 was offered for information about the rock attack. In the same month‚ police questioned six teenagers during their investigation into a spate of rock-throwing incidents. They were not charged because there was insufficient evidence.

The trio’s application for bail has stretched over several weeks and is expected to continue on Thursday.

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