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Mom gutted at light sentences for son's murder

INDEPENDENT MEDIA Kurtlee Pillay was killed in


November 2014
Durban Ootraged this is how Tracy Pillay, whose son Kurtlee was stabbed and run over by his own car, feels
after one of his two assailants was given a wholly suspended sentence, and the other an effective
eight years by the Durban High Court.
The angry mother has described the outcome as a travesty of justice.
Her son Kurtlee, a 20-year-old graphic design student, was slain in November 2014.
Pillay is also disappointed that her input during the plea bargain negotiations was allegedly not
considered by the State.
On Friday Bilal Tayob, 23, was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment which was wholly suspended for
five years. Dinesh Nana, 23, received an effective eight years in jail.
In addition Tayob will be under house arrest for three years.

Tayob pleaded guilty to charges of kidnapping


and defeating the ends of justice, and in addition
to those charges Nana pleaded guilty to robbery
with aggravating circumstances.
In their guilty pleas prepared by advocate Jay
Naidoo, instructed by attorney Ahmed Amod, the
accused - both self-confessed drug addicts claimed that their former co-accused, Blaine
Raman wanted Kurtlee dead. (Charges against
Raman of murder, kidnapping and robbery with
aggravating circumstances were withdrawn in

the Durban Magistrates Court last year because of insufficient evidence.)


The two alleged Raman was angry that Kurtlee had apparently formed a relationship with his exlover.
They said they were instructed by Raman to kidnap Kurtlee and had acted in common purpose when
they deprived him of his liberty by preventing him from exiting his own vehicle.
The accused said they were remorseful and would testify for the State against Raman if the charges
were re-instated.
Tayob, Nana and Raman were nabbed by Warrant Officer Shailendra Singh of the Durban Dog Unit
and other officers.
Tayob and Nana alleged that all 40 stab wounds Kurtlee sustained were inflicted by Raman.
Kurtlees body was found in West Riding Row in Sherwood after he was also knocked down with his
own vehicle, dragged and run over.
His visibly upset mother told Acting Judge Cassim Sardiwalla that her son was not up for sale and
that the R30 000 offered to her by Tayobs family was a ridiculous suggestion.
Pillay said she intended lodging an appeal against the sentences and that she felt insulted by the
R30 000 cash offer.
I am gutted. I am of the view that the accused watered down the roles they played so that they could
get far lighter sentences. They were not upfront with the court and me.
My input to the State regarding the guilty pleas was not considered. Kurtlee and Ramans exgirlfriend were school friends. Kurtlee had his own girlfriend, she said.

The accused (Tayob) and (Nana) ought to have got stiffer sentences. Tayob is free and will see his
family daily. My dear son, on the other hand, is gone and is not coming back.
However, Professor Stephen Tuson, a criminal law expert at Wits University, and Professor Karthy
Govender, a constitutional law expert, told POST that Pillays bid to appeal the sentences was
unlikely to materialise.
This was mainly because she would have to persuade the State, which had agreed to the plea
bargain, to lodge the appeal.
Tuson said it was unlikely that the State (represented by advocate Denardo McDonald) would
consider Pillays request.
In terms of the procedures concerning plea bargains, the State has to canvass the views of the
victim (if alive) or the deceaseds family to satisfy Section 105 (A) of the Criminal Procedure Act.
I dont know the facts of this case, but from what was told to me, it seems that Pillays views were
canvassed by the KwaZulu-Natal Directorate of Public Prosecutions.

The directorate would have tasked the investigating officer (Lieutenant Monty Naidoo) to discuss the
plea bargain agreement with Pillay, he said.
It is not binding on the court to implement the input of the deceaseds family.
The sentencing of the accused was not an easy process, Tuson added.

The court has to take into account numerous


factors, including the age of the accused, the
interest of society, the seriousness of the
offence and so on.
The court has the final say and judges can
either accept or reject guilty pleas tendered
by the accused.
Govender concurred. He added: Pillay was
afforded an opportunity to give her views.
She, unfortunately, does not have any veto
power.
Since the State prosecuted the accused and accepted their guilty pleas, it is going to be
exceptionally difficult for Pillay to convince the State to appeal the sentences.
Attorney Pregen Govindasamy, who kept a watching brief on behalf of Ramans family, said Raman
and his family were aware that he might be re-charged.
Tayob and Nana were ordered to be at court on Thursday).
The sentences will be repeated into the record and so will the outcome of a report compiled by the
Department of Correctional Services in respect of Tayob.
The Post

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