Rameez Patel fit for trial, cell phone confiscated

Not only did the Limpopo High Court on Tuesday hear that murder accused Rameez Patel is mentally and emotionally stable enough to continue with trial but also that his cell phone was confiscated by Police during the investigations regarding the cold blooded murder of his mother, Mahjebeen, last week. This had caused a communications problem between him and his attorney, Tumi Mokwena who asked for postponement until Monday.
When court proceedings started about an hour late, Judge Joseph Raulinga apologised as he first had to work through the psychiatrist’s and psychologist’s reports received after the court had ordered on 7 April for Patel to be evaluated to determine his fitness to continue standing trial. State prosecutor Mashudu Mudau, Mokwena and Raulinga agreed that the reports clearly stated that Patel was mentally and emotionally fit to continue standing trial on the murder charge brought against him following the death of his wife, Fatima at their home in Nirvana in April 2015.
Mokwena addressed the court in an application to have the proceedings postponed to Monday emphasising the fact that Patel was still emotional after the death of his mother. Mokwena cited that Patel’s children were now being cared for by Fatima’s family in Gauteng. Patel has almost no family left seeing that grandparents have since passed away, his father, Firoz was killed during an alleged armed robbery just over a year ago and his mother recently murdered.
Mokwena also mentioned Patel’s children were traumatised by the killing of Mahjebeen as they saw her lying in a pool of blood after the incident. Psychiatric evaluation was still to be arranged for the children, according to Mokwena. He further indicated that since the news of Mahjebeen’s death broke Mokwena could not get hold of Patel telephonically.
It was only on Friday when Patel phoned Mokwena from his uncle’s phone when he was informed that Patel’s cell phone had been confiscated during investigations of the murder of his mother. Mokwena emphasised that Patel was under emotional stress and applied for postponement of at least a month or two, a request Raulinga rejected.
Raulinga expressed the court’s sympathy with Patel but insisted that the trial was to proceed. This case has been dragging for too long. I am not going to allow any further postponement,” Raulinga said.
Provincial Police Spokesperson Moatshe Ngoepe could not confirm whether Patel’s phone had been confiscated, due to the sensitivity of the case.

Story: RC Myburgh
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