Dewani then brings his other hand to
his pocket, then appears to hand the room key to his companion and walks
with him into the room with hands in pockets
The
court heard that the businessman used an ordered 'hit' on a family
friend, three years before, to persuade Zola Tongo that a fake car
jacking would be a perfect cover for the honeymoon murder of his bride.
Investigators
probing Anni Dewani's death cleared Dewani of any involvement in the
unsolved murder of the father of a friend in 2007, also in South Africa.
But they suspect the wealthy businessman may have used its modus operandi when plotting to kill his new wife.
Dewani,
34, denies claims by taxi driver Tongo and two hitmen that he
masterminded the conspiracy to kidnap and murder his Swedish wife
following an ambush of their car that left him and the driver unharmed.
However,
testimony of 'middle man' Monde Mbolombo, who recruited two gun men at
Tongo's request, has resurrected the mysterious murder of Dr Pox
Raghavjee and its unsettling similarities to Mrs Dewani's death.
The
Western Cape High Court, where Dewani is on trial for murder, had been
told by Tongo that the idea to fake a carjacking had been suggested by
Dewani during a trip to change money to pay the killers.
This
was supported by Mbolombo who told prosecutor Adrian Mopp that Dewani
had claimed to Tongo the method had been tried and tested by him.
'He
[Dewani] went on further to say [to Tongo] that it was not the first
time he did this. He did this before in South Africa,' Mbolombo told the
court.
Evidence: The opening shot of the
surveillance camera sequence shown to the South African court shows
suspect Shrien Dewani walking through the foyer of the Cape Grace hotel
days after his new wife's murder
Dewani
opened his eyes and mouth in an extravagant show of disbelief in the
direction of the press benches as Mbolombo gave this piece of evidence
to the Western Cape High Court.
And
although his slick legal team are successfully managing to pick holes
in Mbolombo's testimony – the former hotel receptionist admitted lying
to police in the past - and highlighting contradictions in his claims
since he first spoke to investigators four years ago, this intriguing
element of his story has been constant.
In
a statement to detectives just six days after 28 year-old Mrs Dewani's
death, in November 2010, Mbolombo made his first reference to
Bristol-based Dewani's murderous boasts.
Suspicions: Dewani is in a corridor of the hotel, checking his phone and clutching a white carrier bag
'He
[Tongo] also said he got the impression this man had been in South
Africa before and also had done something like this before, as he
mentioned that he wanted the murder to look like any hijacking. He said
that the man had previously arranged for somebody to be killed in a
'fake hijacking in South Africa',' Mbolombo's statement read.
Dr
Raghavjee was found dead in his car three years before Mrs Dewani, the
apparent victim of a carjacking - a common crime in South Africa.
The
circumstances around his death bore two striking similarities to Mrs
Dewani's - they were both killed with a single bullet, and neither of
the cars they were ambushed in were stolen.
Dr
Raghavjee's wallet, cash and watch were even left at the crime scene -
leading investigators to believe that it was more of a contract 'hit'
than a genuine car-bound kidnap and robbery.
Retail therapy: The bag is from a
shopping trip to the nearby V&A Waterfront. The Western Cape High
Court heard Dewani chose to shop for greetings cards instead of
attending a Hindu ceremony to bless his wife's body
Dewani
knew details of the unsolved crime well from the doctor's son,
Krischen, and daughter in law Alvita, who are close friends from
Bristol.
Despite
offering a reward for information worth £9,000 – a massive amount in
poverty-stricken South Africa – the murder remains a mystery.
And
in a further twist, the dead man's widow, Heather, was one of the first
people to travel to Cape Town to comfort Dewani in the days after the
engineer's body was found.
In
CCTV footage previously viewed by the court, Shrien Dewani is seen
allegedly slipping away from a policeman and his father-in-law to
secretly pay the driver he'd hired to kill his wife.
Sad: Dewani's father Prakash and his father-in-law Vinod Hindocha return from the ritual to bless Anni's body
Dewani
failed to give an explanation for his seven-minute absence to either
the father of his dead wife or an officer assigned to her murder, his
trial heard.
During
the series of shots, the wealthy businessman is seen before, during and
after the meeting with Zola Tongo. It came three days after his new
wife Anni was found dead in the back of Tongo's taxi, a bullet through
her neck.
As
well as revealing the exchange of money between Dewani and Tongo, the
13-minute sequence exposes a striking difference in body language
between Mrs Dewani's obviously grief-stricken father and her apparently
relaxed husband of two weeks.
On the move: Dewani is shown again in the same location, this time clutching his laptop computer as well
Dewani,
34, admits handing over R1,000 (£65) to Tongo during the short
encounter, but says it was a tip, not payment for his wife's contract
killing. Tongo claims he was short-changed by Dewani for organising hit
men to kill the Swedish engineer, which the businessman had ordered to
be disguised as a carjacking.
The
film, taken from a variety of locations around the Cape Grace hotel,
begins with Dewani walking back from a shopping trip to the nearby
V&A Waterfront, a small white plastic bag swinging from his hand.
The
Western Cape High Court has heard how Bristol-based Dewani chose to
shop for African-themed greetings cards over attending a Hindu ceremony
to bless his wife's dead body as it was prepared to be flown back to
Britain.
Waiting: Dewani sits alone, peering at his laptop and mobile phone, in the hotel's closed in terrace
On his way: Cab driver Zola Tongo,
dressed all in white, makes his way to his meeting with Dewani at the
hotel. He claims he was recruited four days before by the newlywed to
organise his bride's murder
Difficult: Mr Hindocha, Anni's father,
arrives back on the hotel terrace after going to see his daughter's
body. He is accompanied by a police officer who is carrying a newspaper
splashed with news of Anni's murder
Read all about it: Dewani immediately snatches up the broadsheet and is seen scanning the front page
His
father, Prakash, attended the ritual instead, which was organised by
Vinod Hindocha, Dewani's father-in-law, and the two men are shown being
dropped back at the hotel after the blessing at the mortuary.
Dewani,
unshaven and wearing jeans, is shown carrying the small white bag and
his laptop and settling down on a leather sofa in a quiet seating area
of the hotel's closed-in terrace.
The bag which came with the packet of greeting cards, is now holding the the money for Tongo, the court heard.
At
one point, Dewani looks behind him and up at the CCTV camera in the
corner of the room. Earlier, Tongo told the trial that he had warned
Dewani about the security camera as they met the morning after the
township carjacking.
Time to go: Dewani apparently gets the message from Tongo that he's arriving at the hotel
They
were waiting to hear news of Mrs Dewani, who had been driven off in the
back of Tongo's taxi by two armed men, after the driver and Dewani had
both been released unharmed.
As
Dewani sits peering between the screens of his laptop and phone, Tongo –
who claims he was recruited by the newlywed to organise his bride's
murder within minutes of dropping them at the hotel four days before –
is seen on another camera making his way to get his payment, dressed
from head to toe in white.
One
of the empty leather chairs opposite Dewani is then filled by Mr
Hindocha, 65, who is accompanied by a police officer carrying a paper
emblazoned with news of Mrs Dewani's murder.
Dewani
immediately snatches up the broadsheet and is seen scanning the front
page, which shows a picture of the blood-smeared car from which her body
was recovered.
On his way: Tongo is seen on camera walking towards the main entrance of the Cape Grace hotel
Entering the complex: He strolls up to the glass doors, which are opened for him by a doorman
Shortly
after Dewani is seen looking at his lit-up phone – Tongo messages to
say he is nearby, the court was told – and stands up and leaves the
room, the small bag of money is in his hand.
He
passes Captain Vinesh Lutchman who comes through the door - he was the
first detective to investigate Mrs Dewani's murder, and was by this
point the liaison officer for the grieving family as they prepare to fly
her body home.
A
security camera in the lobby picks up the familiar figure of Dewani, in
collared shirt, as he waits and paces while Tongo walks through the car
park, just seconds away.
As he comes through the imposing glass entrance, Dewani turns and walk off briskly, indicating that the driver should follow.
Waiting: Dewani is seen pacing back and forth in the hotel lobby in the moments before Tongo appears
In
his testimony Tongo told the court, 'I saw the gentleman standing
there. He was just standing at the beginning of the passage. He
signalled me to follow him. I did.'
The
two men are seen heading down a deserted corridor and through the door
of the hotel's small business centre, where they met for 90 seconds in
private, away from any cameras.
Tongo
is seen leaving the room, his pocket bulging with the bag, and
disappearing into a hotel lavatory - where he began to count the money.
He
told the court he had been expecting to get R4,000 (approximately £260
pounds), for recruiting the hit men and driving Mrs Dewani into danger.
Follow me: Dewani leads the way as he takes the cab driver to a part of the hotel which is not covered by CCTV
Paid, but apparently not in full... Tongo leaves. He says Dewani paid him R1,000, a quarter of what he expected
He
said: 'I counted the money inside. There was only 1,000 South African
rand [£65]. I was angry. I put it in my back pocket. I went outside.'
Dewani
is then shown returning to his room upstairs, briefly, and comes back
down the corridor with a large notebook – perhaps to use its retrieval
as the cover for his absence - and re-joins his father-in-law and
Captain Lutchman downstairs.
He
has been away for nearly seven minutes – but Captain Lutchman shook his
head and replied, 'no, he said nothing,' when asked by prosecutor
Adrian Mopp if Dewani had said where he had been been. Tongo was not a
suspect in the carjacking by that point, the officer confirmed to the
court.
One last errand: Dewani is next seen returning to his room at the hotel
Dewani resumes his position in the leather sofa, opposite his father in law, and draws his computer on his lap to type.
For
most of the sequence, with the officer next to him busy with newspapers
and police paperwork, Mr Hindocha sits entirely motionless, his head
resting on his hands, his eyes staring at his lap.
The
body language between Mrs Dewani's husband and father could not be more
conflicting. During the entire sequence, the two men are seen to
exchange hardly a word.
Just had to get this... He re-emerges from the room with a large notebook
Dewani,
his father, and Mr Hindocha left Cape Town the following day,
accompanying Mrs Dewani's body. Three days later, Tongo confessed to his
part in her murder, implicating her new husband as the chief
conspirator in the plot.
The
driver turned state witness and told police how he had recruited two
hitmen to help him stage a carjacking as the cover for the killing – a
strategy allegedly devised by Dewani.
Tongo
was sentenced to 18 years for murder, hitman Mziwamadoda Qwabe who
confessed to his part was jailed for 25 years and Zolile Mngeni was
convicted of murder following a trial and also jailed for 25 years, but
died last month from a brain tumour.
Sumptous: Dewani carries the notebook back through the hotel's lavish surroundings
Monde
Mbolombo is currently giving evidence against Dewani - he was a 'middle
man' tasked by Tongo with recruiting the killers and spared prosecution
in return for giving evidence at Mngeni's trial.
He
now faces prosecution following Dewani's hearing, unless Judge Jeanette
Traverso is persuaded that his immunity should be extended.
Qwabe and Mbolombo both told the court how Tongo told them he had been hired by a husband who wanted a lady killed.
Dewani denies five charges, including murder and kidnapping.
The trial continues.
Mourning: He re-enters the enclosed
terrace where his father-in-law is waiting, head in hand, sitting next
to local police officer Captain Vinesh Lutchman who was acting as the
liaison officer for the family
Keeping busy: Dewani fiddles with his laptop and phone as Mr Hindocha stays into space blankly
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