Murders So Foul

By Marimuthu Subramoney
(aka Subry Govender)



Mr Soodama Ramlall, 81, and his wife, Bhana, 70, were two senior citizens enjoying their retirement years at their humble home in Valdin Heights, Verulam. Their residential area was built about 17 years ago and all the families in their road formed a closely knit community.
The Ramlalls' had one of their three sons living with them, while most of their other family members lived in the vicinity. They were comfortable and had no concerns about their safety.
But in the early hours of Saturday, September 24, they became the latest victims of the vicious and brutal crime wave that has engulfed Verulam and other surrounding areas. Some unknown animals (even animals would not descend to such levels) gained entry into their home and snuffed out their lives. Mr Ramlall, a paraplegic, and his diebetic wife were beaten with a blunt instrument, gagged and strangled.
The criminals then ransacked the house and helped themselves to jewellery, cash and electrical goods. There's no doubt that the criminals would try to flog the jewellery that they had stolen to people who place "Cash for Gold" advertisements on trees, electricity poles and other strategic points.
At the time of the tragedy, the Ramlalls' youngest son was not at home.
The Ramlall's son-in-law, Mr Radesh Ramchurran, who lives a short distance away, was the first person who rushed to the house at about 8am on Saturday morning after being informed that his in-laws were not answering the door. Ramchurran gave permission to members of the private security company, RUSA, to break the front door of the house in order to check what had happened to his in-laws.
"What we found was horrifying. Both my elderly in-laws were lying dead with pieces of cloths shoved into their mouths. They had also been beaten very badly. The people who murdered them had gained entry into the house through the roof.
"We are all shocked and cannot understand why they had to be killed. If the people who gained entry wanted to steal they could have helped themselves to whatever they wanted because my father-in-law was crippled and my mother-in-law had eye problems because of diabetes."
Hundreds of shocked relatives, neighbours and friends attended the funeral of the Ramlalls yesterday. They also could not believe that human beings could be responsible for such brutal murders of an elderly couple who could not defend themselves.
The murders of the Ramlalls follow the murder early this year of an elderly woman, Mrs Baker, who lived alone in the nearby suburb of Everest Heights.
The police say the Ramlalls have been "soft targets" and they are investigating.
But the question that most people are asking is: "When are these dastardly deeds going to come to an end?" and "How long must families of victims wait for the murderers to be arrested and brought to book?"
Since the early 1990s literally hundreds of people have been brutally and mercilessly murdered in and around the Durban-Verulam-Tongaat and other areas, but in many cases, families are still waiting for the murderers to be brought to book.
The people have had enough of these senseless killings and the authorities must be called to account for their failure to track down many of these murderers and to bring them to justice.
Enough is enough. The authorities must either safeguard its citizens or step down from their high office. We cannot allow South Africa to become a lawless state. The death penalty should be restored if there's no other effective deterrent. - Subry Govender, Chief Editor