Sewram widow to sue for loss of support

The widow of murdered doctor Bhavish Sewram is suing businessman Rajivee Soni, who is standing trial for his murder, for damages of more than R10.6 million.

As the murder trial of Soni continued on Monday in the Pietermaritzburg High Court with the final forensic ballistics expert Jacobus Steyl presenting his evidence, a representative from the sheriff of the high court’s office attempted to serve a document on Soni which was rejected by Soni and his attorney, Naren Sangham, allegedly on grounds that it had the wrong address. The sheriff’s representative then did not serve the documents on Soni.

The document prepared on behalf of Yuvadia Sewram (Bhavish’s wife) is to notify Soni of a pending civil lawsuit against him. Yuvadia, represented by attorney Siva Chetty, is claiming damages of more than R10,6 million on behalf of herself and her children aged six and seven, because of the loss of support they have suffered as a result of her husband’s murder.

Soni has pleaded not guilty to a charge that he was responsible for hiring a hitman to kill Sewram.

State witness Professor Mlungisi Sithebe earlier in the trial revealed explosive details of how Soni had contacted him and made him an offer of R100 000 to shoot Dr Bhavish Sewram, who he suspected of being in a relationship with his wife Kerusha. Sewram was shot dead outside his Raisethorpe surgery in May 2013.

The trial within a trial has concluded with Steyl’s evidence which has continued for several weeks while the court determines the legal admissibility and authenticity of the video taken by Sithebe.

Soni, in his defense, maintains that there are numerous flaws in the way the cellphone and video footage was handled by police investigators after they retrieved it from Cash Crusaders, where Sithebe had pawned the cellphone. According to Sithebe’s evidence, the video was taken while travelling with Soni in his car in the vicinity of Dr Bhavish Sewram’s surgery in Chota Motala Road during February 2013.

The trial continues on Thursday, December 17.