Durban — The defence of a man alleged to have torched his fiancée alive in their Phoenix flat is seeking to obtain his bank statements and cellphone records to form part of the case when the matter goes to trial.
Shaun Naicker, 38, appeared before Judge Bruce Bedderson in the Durban High Court on Thursday, where his Legal Aid defence, Pregasen Marimuthu, indicated that they sought the accused’s bank statements and cellphone records and had encountered difficulty with this from the State.
Judge Bedderson then went on to order that the State make a section 205 application to obtain these, even though it would not be using them in its case during the trial.
The case was adjourned to July for a pre-trial. Marimuthu had been standing in for his Legal Aid colleague Musa Chiliza.
Naicker is charged with the murder of Nivashni “Jackie” Naidoo. They lived together in a flat with Naidoo’s 12-year-old son.
According to the State, Naidoo had suffered physical abuse at the hands of the accused before she was murdered.
The State alleges the circumstances around Naidoo’s murder were that during the morning of May 9, 2022, the couple were alone in their flat.
“In circumstances unknown to the State, the accused set fire to the flat using an accelerant. He removed items mentioned in count 3 (theft) and he fled the scene in her car leaving her in her flat. The accused died in the fire. The cause of death was determined as thermal burns,” alleged the State.
Naicker is also charged with the theft of Naidoo’s ID document, her vehicle – a VW Polo 6 TSI – as well as her valuables including three cellphones, a tablet, a laptop, jewellery, and sunglasses.
The State in Naicker’s indictment has listed 14 witnesses who are expected to testify in the trial.
Dates for the trial will be set once the pre-trial conference has been concluded and a judge deems the matter trial-ready.
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Daily News