'Brit-Indian "monkey" conspired to have his wife killed in Cape Town'

Cape Town, Dec 10 (ANI): The murder case of Brit Indian bride, Anni Dewani, in Cape Town took a new turn after a top policeman branded the victim's husband a "monkey" who came all the way from London to have his wife killed in South Africa.

The Daily Mail quoted South African national police commissioner General Bheki Cele as saying that Shrien had arranged the hit on his bride two weeks ahead of their marriage.

"A monkey came all the way from London to have his wife murdered here. Shrien thought we South Africans were stupid when he came all the way to kill his wife in our country. He lied to himself," he added.

General Cele, who is black, is understood to have used 'monkey' to denote bad behaviour rather than as a deliberate racial slur. But there were claims his words will fuel tensions between black South Africans and the country's large Asian community, which plays a key role in the nation's economy, the paper said.

The paper further quoted one of Dewani's friends as saying that Cele's outburst is an indication that the care home owner would not get a fair trial in South Africa.

"What chance has Shrien got of justice when the chief of police is calling him a monkey? This is the same officer who, only a few days ago, publicly declared Shrien was not a suspect," he added.

Westminster magistrates heard allegations that he had reportedly arranged a similar hit on someone on a previous visit to the country, a claim vigorously denied by Dewani.

Zola Tongo, the taxi driver Mr Dewani allegedly hired to organise his bride's death, was this week jailed for 18 years, reduced from 25 years after he implicated the Briton in the murder, the paper added.

Two other men, Xolile Mngeni, 23, and Mziwamadoda Qwabe, 25, face charges of murder, aggravated robbery and kidnapping. They are due to appear in court next year. (ANI)