Trial of Polokwane businessman accused of killing his wife resumes

The murder trial of Limpopo businessman Rameez Patel is expected to resume on Tuesday at the Limpopo high court in Polokwane after he allegedly murdered his wife and the mother of his children, Fatima, in October 2015.  

The couple had apparently argued over Patel’s extramarital affairs before he allegedly shot and killed her at their Nirvana home. A string of violent family deaths also followed after Patel’s wife was murdered; starting with his mother Mahejeen Banu Patel, 51, who was shot and killed in the presence of her domestic worker in 2017.

Patel was arrested in connection with his mother’s murder in 2017. It was suspected that he had played a hand his mother’s murder after she confronted him about murdering Fatima. At the time his mother was killed, Patel was out on R250,000 bail in connection with Fatima’s murder case.

The charges against him for his mother’s case were provisionally withdrawn due to lack of evidence.

Patel’s father Firoz was also later shot and killed in a robbery while his brother Rameez who previously testified against Patel was also shot at in Mankweng but survived the attack.  

Patel was never linked to the cases involving his father and brother. In his testimony, Rameez had told the court that Patel confessed to murdering Fatima.

The defense is likely to try and present evidence to refute Rameez’s testimony.

mahopoz@sowetan.co.za