Cleaner lied about suspect in Mauritius, police claim

MAURITIAN POLICE investigating the killing of Michaela McAreavey believed a hotel worker lied to them to protect one of the men now on trial for the Irish woman’s murder.

Govinden Samynaden, a room cleaner at Legends Hotel, said one of the men accused of murdering Ms McAreavey, his supervisor Sandip Moneea, was in his company between 2.05pm and 3pm on January 10th last year – about the time when police believe the killing took place.

However, readings from room keycards show Mr Moneea entering a room at a different location at 2.28pm that day.

In court yesterday, a police officer said that when officers presented Mr Samynaden with the apparent discrepancy, he admitted his initial account had been incorrect.

“Mr Samynaden had lied to police and tried to shield Sandip Moneea in [his] first statement,” said Jean-Robert Manoovaloo of the major crime investigation team.

“When this was put to him, he admitted that what he gave us . . . was incorrect,” the officer added.

Ms McAreavey (27), the daughter of Tyrone football manager Mickey Harte, was killed while on honeymoon with her husband John. The prosecution says she was murdered by Mr Moneea (42) and his colleague Avinash Treebhoowoon (31) after she returned to her room and found them stealing. They deny the charges.

On the 15th day of the trial yesterday, the criminal court of Mauritius heard that Mr Moneea told police the first he knew that something had happened was when he saw the hotel manager and a porter screaming and running towards the McAreaveys’ room at about 3.15pm.

After following them to the room, Mr Moneea said, he saw a woman in a bikini lying motionless on the floor. He used the room phone to call the operator for a doctor and then left the room when ordered by the manager.

“I don’t know who killed her and I don’t know anything about her death. I didn’t kill her,” he told police.

Police put it to Mr Moneea that, at 9am on the morning of the killing, he received a “dummy” keycard from a hotel security officer, Dassen Naraynen, to steal from guests. Mr Moneea denied this.

The court also heard evidence yesterday from Insp Ranjit Singh Jokhoo, one of the lead investigators. Under cross-examination from Sanjeev Teeluckdharry, for Mr Treebhoowoon, Insp Jokhoo was asked if police inquired into any “premature departures” from Legends Hotel on the day of the killing. He was not aware of such inquiries, he replied.

Mr Teeluckdharry asked him whether, in homicide cases, police normally inquired into questions of inheritance and insurance.

Insp Jokhoo replied: “I personally did not inquire into this matter, because for me this was not an issue in this case.”

The barrister asked him whether he had ever come across a case of death due to “erotic asphyxiation”. The officer replied that he was not aware of such cases, but lead prosecution lawyer Mehdi Manrakhan objected to the question and asked for it and the reply to be struck from the record.

Judge Prithviraj Fecknah upheld the objection, saying it was irrelevant as Mr Teeluckdharry had provided no background information.