Arrested for the murder of his son on Friday August 27, the release on bail petition of Rengasamy Kistnasawmy will soon be heard in Court. The day following his arrest, he was brought in front of the ‘Bail & Remand Court’ (BRC) on a provisional charge of murder (manslaughter) and subsequently returned to the Vacoas detention center. On Monday 30th August, his lawyer put forward a motion for his release. For his part, Mr. Sunil Bheeroo explained that his client regrets what happened that day. “He did not expect to lose his son in such circumstances. He never wanted it to be that way. He simply defended himself when his son tried to assault him,” he said before adding,” My client had scolded his son for not doing the dishes. As a result, the victim turned on his father, who had to defend himself. He left him and it was not until the next day that he found him unconscious in his bed,” states Me Bheeroo. “The police have no evidence that my client assaulted his son,” affirmed the lawyer.
Indeed, the police suspect that the 77-year-old man inflicted a severe blow on the head of 38-year-old Kesaven Kistnasawmy causing the death of the latter. The autopsy performed by Dr Prem Shaman ‘Police Medical Officer’ (PMO) attributed the cause of death to intracranial hemorrhage, possibly caused by a blow to the head.
Not seeing his son waking up the morning following the incident, the worried former security guard Rengasamy Kistnasawmy informed his son-in-law of the situation. The latter sought the help of the police from the Vacoas Police station.
When they arrived at the scene around midday, the police could only note the death of the 38-year-old lying in bed with his face covered in blood. They also found traces of blood on the walls of the victim’s bedroom and in another room.
In order to clarify this matter, the Vacoas criminal squad and the ‘Scene of Crime Office’ (SOCO) were called to the scene. A rolling pin bearing traces of blood was sent for analysis. As part of this investigation, Rengasamy Kistnasawmy’s daughter and son-in-law were taken to the police station for their statements, after which they were allowed to return home. As for the alleged murderer, he was arrested when the autopsy report came out. Since then, he has spent his nights in detention.
According to the relatives of Kesaven Kistnasawmy, his life changed 12 years ago when he separated from his wife and now 14-year-old son, who live with his mother in Albion. “He had no permanent employment and would take up odd jobs. The money he earned was spent on alcoholic drinks. He drank a lot every day but every time he got drunk, he would fall asleep peacefully in his room,” said his relatives. Shocked and confused, those close to the old man said, “Father and son have always been calm and quiet.” The victim’s sister said, “My brother had taken care of the housework, cleaned the yard and fed my father since our mother passed away five years ago. Se zis kan li bwar, ki li ti pe fatig nou latet inpe. Me kan li ti azin, li ti mari korek ”. She also told us that her brother had started drinking denatured alcohol. On Thursday 26th August, he fell dead drunk after consuming “enn topet lalkol”.
On Saturday August 28, Malini was able to meet her father in the premises of the CID of Vacoas. “Monn amenn biskwi ek dilo pou li. Monn dir li fer enn demars manz inpe parski li paret bien afekte ek fatigue. His mem tou monn kapav dir li avan ki bann lapolis-la pran li pou al poz li kestion ek so avoka,” says Malini. At this point, Rengasamy Kistnasawmy claims that he has defended himself when his son wanted to come after him.
As a reminder, Rengasamy Kistnasawmy explained in his testimony that his son had become an alcoholic after his divorce. The latter specifies that his daughter-in-law and his grandson left because his son drank too much and did not work. The old man lived under the same roof as the latter as well as his daughter and son-in-law. His eldest daughter and his wife have passed away. The 70-year-old says he used to take his son to hospital regularly for treatment, either from a fall or other health complications. Father and son had an argument early in the afternoon on Thursday August 26th.
