By Mandy Thompson
The two men who pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the killing of female taxi driver Seeraji Singh were each sentenced to 40 years imprisonment by Justice Roxane George in the High Court yesterday.
However, Anandram Dhanraj and Naresh Boodhoo, both 24 years old now, will only spend 30 years incarcerated owing to various mitigating factors that were taken into account.
The duo had pleaded guilty to shooting Seeraji Singh in February 2006, while a third man who was charged along with them, Hemraj Boodhwah, was freed earlier in the trial after the court accepted a no-case submission filed on his behalf.
Yesterday’s proceedings began with the presentation of probation reports on Dhanraj and Boodhoo, which did not help them. The reports revealed that residents in the community were fearful of Dhanraj and Boodhoo returning to the area since they were of disreputable character and were in the habit of consuming alcohol, at the time they were incarcerated both men were 18 years old. The reports stated that Boodhoo was in the habit of using illegal substances, while Dhanraj was described as abusive and disrespectful.
Dhanraj’s attorney Clement Richardson remained silent during the proceedings, but attorney Peter Hugh, who represented Boodhoo, argued that the probation officer failed to enquire from the prison officers about his client’s behaviour while in prison.
The prosecution asked the court to take into account, when sentencing the criminals, the manner in which Singh met her demise and that a life was lost as a result of their action.
Justice George then asked Singh’s relatives if they had anything to say, and her daughter, Pamela Singh, asked Dhanraj why he did what he did and how he felt about it. Justice George then told Singh’s daughter that Dhanraj had the right to either answer or reject the question. Dhanraj did not respond.
Boodhoo’s attorney then proceeded to ask the court to take into account the overall circumstances and the fact that his client did not waste the court’s time. Hugh asked that other mitigating factors such as the age of his client at the time the offence was committed, his limited educational background, which has impacted his level of thinking, and the fact that he was in custody for 6 years, be taken into consideration. Hugh also noted that this offence was the first time his client was before the court and that he is currently a barber in prison. It is on these grounds that Hugh asked the court to be lenient towards his client so as to give him an opportunity to make a meaningful contribution to society.
Justice George then asked the duo if they had anything to say.
Claimed deceased pursued him
At this point, Dhanraj stood up and spoke in a calm voice. He said he had just turned 18 when he went to prison and he and Seeraji Singh were neighbours who “used to live good”. Dhanraj also told the court that he used to drink but never smoked.
He said that one night Seeraji Singh saw him walking home from work and told him he should not walk home so late, but should call her instead.
Dhanraj claimed that Seeraji Singh had pursued him to have a relationship with her despite the fact that he had a girlfriend he named as Amanda, with whom he has a daughter now five years old.
Leading up to the fateful day, he said, he was in the interior when he received a telephone call from Seeraji Singh and travelled to town and waited at a Chinese restaurant to meet her. He said he called Seeraji Singh and she turned up at the restaurant.
Dhanraj told the court that Seeraji Singh had invited him into her car and she then drove along the railway embankment road and turned into Ogle Road, where she stopped the car, exited and asked him to get out also.
“She then told me I have to leave Amanda and she grabbed my jersey,” he claimed, adding that there was a scuffle during which she grabbed the firearm he had in his possession. Dhanraj told the court, “I did not go to shoot her but the firearm went off.”
Dhanraj then said he was very sorry for all the pain and sorrow Seeraji Singh’s family has been through and he wished things had not gone the way they did, adding that he is a changed person now. Dhanraj then sat in the dock with tears in his eyes and his hands on his face with his head bent.
When it was Boodhoo’s turn, he got up and spoke briefly. He said he was very sorry for what happened and apologized to the deceased’s family for his actions. He also asked the court to be lenient in sentencing him.
Justice George, before imposing penalty on the men, said that based on the caution statements taken from them it was clear that they had no regard for people’s right to life.
Justice George also noted that based on the evidence presented by the prosecution, they had discussed, on a number of occasions, robbing the deceased of her car. She also noted that based on the evidence, the incident was no accident as claimed, since they had planned to rob Seeraji Singh.
In imposing the sentences, Justice George said that the two men acted together and neither played a lesser role. Given the horrific nature of the crime, the starting threshold for penalty must be high and very few mitigating factors were present in the case, the judge noted.
As regards the probation reports, Justice George said they spoke volumes about the men’s character and they are a danger to the community as stated in the reports.
Aggravating factors included the cold-blooded killing of Singh, the fact that the men conducted a robbery with a gun and the prevalence of taxi drivers being robbed and killed by perpetrators, according to Justice George.
The judge also said she would take into consideration the men’s ages.
Justice George then told Dhanraj and Boodhoo that they were sentenced to 40 years in prison with 4 years deducted because they entered a plea of guilty as well as for the 6 years they were incarcerated. She told them that they would still be eligible to be employed in the public sector and make a good contribution to society since they would be out before the age of retirement.
Boodhoo and Dhanraj had shot Seeraji Singh in her mouth and shoved her out of her car on the road. She was then picked up and taken to the Georgetown Hospital where she died.
