Five held in kidnap/murder probe

Apr 12, 2014 News

– Police Commissioner

Five people are in custody as police intensify their investigation into the murder of spare parts dealer Rajendra Singh, who was shot and dumped in Le Repentir Cemetery four days after being kidnapped from his home.

Rajendra Singh

Commissioner of Police (ag) Seelall Persaud made this disclosure to journalists yesterday during his outreach programme in Albouystown.
Because of the sensitive nature of the investigation, the Top Cop declined to provide further details about the identity of the suspects. However, indications are that police are making significant progress.
Singh’s body was discovered in an isolated section of Le Repentir cemetery at around 09:30 hours on Wednesday. He had been shot twice in the head and a 9mm warhead was reportedly retrieved from the scene.
His killers had used a jersey to tie his mouth and nose and his belt to bind his hands. They had also removed his pants, leaving him clad in his socks and his underwear.
Investigators believe that Singh was killed in the cemetery sometime early Wednesday.
The shocking discovery came even as Singh’s relatives had accumulated part of the ransom, which they had hoped to deliver to the kidnappers to secure his release.
Singh was snatched from his store on the Foulis Public Road last week Saturday in the presence of his wife and two of his employees, by two gunmen who pretended to be customers.The men dumped Singh in the trunk of his car and sped away.
The vehicle, a Toyota IST, was found abandoned at Goedverwagting, a few miles away.
The kidnappers subsequently made an initial demand of $50M for his release but reduced the ransom by half the following morning.
The kidnappers had also warned Singh’s wife not to contact the police. They also demanded the tapes from the surveillance cameras that surrounded the business place.
Although they were monitoring the subsequent telephone calls, investigators had admitted that they were unable to ascertain the exact location from where they originated with a view to narrowing down where Singh was being held captive.
Detectives had detained a woman who was listed as the owner of the SIM card from which telephone contact was made by the kidnappers to the businessman’s wife.