Newlywed denies 'link' to earlier murder

A British newlywed accused of hiring a hitman to kill his bride on their South African honeymoon today denied he was involved in another murder three years earlier.

South African National Commissioner General Bheki Cele told reporters police are investigating a link between wealthy businessman Shrien Dewani and the 2007 murder of Dr Pox Raghavjee.

Publicist Max Clifford, who represents Dewani, dismissed the possibility his client was implicated in either murder.

He said the doctor's widow, Heather Raghavjee, had travelled from King's William Town to Cape Town to comfort Dewani after the murder.

However, he said they had never previously met and Mrs Raghavjee had made the journey at the request of her daughter-in-law, Alvita Raghavjee, who lives in the Bristol area and knows the Dewani family.

Dewani, 30, was released from Wandsworth Prison on bail last night after his family came up with £250,000 (€298,873) security. He is wanted by South African police for conspiracy to murder his new wife Anni, 28, who was killed during a carjacking.

Dr Raghavjee also died during a car-jacking but the case reportedly remains open.

Taxi driver Zola Tongo accused Dewani of offering to pay 15,000 rand (€1,658) for his wife's murder and ordering it to appear like a bungled carjacking as they drove through the notorious township of Gugulethu.

Tongo's allegation formed part of a plea agreement drawn up with prosecutors at Western Cape High Court where he was jailed for 18 years earlier this week for his part in the killing.

Tongo has also alleged that Dewani told him he had arranged a murder in a fake hijacking in South Africa before.

Mr Clifford said: "Heather Raghavjee flew from King's William Town in South Africa to Cape Town to try to comfort the family at the request of her daughter-in-law Alvita, who lives in the Bristol area and knew the Dewani family.

"She had never met Shrien before in her life. But she experienced what he experienced when her husband, Dr Pox Raghavjee, was shot dead in a carjacking three years earlier."

He said Dewani's father and father-in-law both flew to Cape Town on Sunday, the day after the murder, and Mrs Raghavjee then met them all to talk to them and provide comfort.

Speaking earlier, Mr Clifford said: "How flimsy and ridiculous this whole thing is. If it wasn't so tragic it would be a farce, a comedy."

The national commissioner has previously been criticised for describing Dewani as a "monkey".

His spokeswoman said today: "The investigation is ongoing even if it means linking Mr Dewani to other cases."

She confirmed a report the commissioner said police were investigating a link between Dewani and the Eastern Cape doctor's murder three years ago in King William's Town.

The commissioner told South African broadcaster SABC: "We are continuing investigations. There are new revelations about the Eastern Cape... So let's see what's going on."

Yesterday at the High Court, prosecutor Ben Watson said "the net was closing in". He said Dewani should not be granted bail "even on the most stringent conditions".

But Dewani, from Westbury-on-Trym, Bristol, was granted bail and now faces electronic tagging, home curfew and having to report daily to the police pending further extradition hearings.

The care home owner was driven away from Wandsworth Prison in a BMW X5. The car left the prison with him hidden beneath a blanket in the back.

His family welcomed the judge's decision, saying in a joint statement: "We are all delighted that the courts have consistently upheld Shrien Dewani's right to bail."

His wife was found dead in the back of an abandoned taxi in a Cape Town township with a single bullet wound to her neck on November 13.

Dewani was arrested this week after the South African authorities issued a warrant as the first stage to seeking his extradition.