Hashim Dennis, who was 75 when he was murdered in his home after his son-in-law obtained hitmen to kill him and his wife.
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A cold-blooded attack orchestrated by the son-in-law of a Muslim couple, who were attacked in their Cape Town home, in Northpine, while getting ready for their morning prayers, resulted in one of the attackers being convicted on a charge of murder and two charges of attempted murder.
Brent Williams, who hired two hitmen to attack his in-laws, had meanwhile died shortly before the conclusion of his murder trial before the Western Cape High Court. One of the killers, Reagan Davids, was meanwhile convicted, while the third perpetrator is still unknown.
The court heard that there were tensions in the home environment that led Williams to obtain hitmen to kill his in-laws to “neutralise” his marital problems. He and his wife, Ibtisaan Dennis, lived in the same house but in different bedrooms. His in-laws, Hashim Dennis, 75, and his wife of 47 years, 70-year-old Kulsoem Dennis, lived in a flat on the premises.
In the early hours of January 31, Williams drove his two co-perpetrators close to his home, where he gave them the house keys. The Dennis couple started their daily routine by preparing for their daily prayers, including slightly opening their flatlet's sliding door.
They each commenced the cleansing ritual necessary before performing prayers. While her husband was preparing this ritual by washing in the bathroom, Mrs Dennis was seated on their bed, reciting passages from the Holy Quran.
From behind her, she heard the voice of an intruder who, with brutal force, attacked her by hitting her head, neck, and chest area with a gun. She hailed, “Allahu-Akbar” (God is Great) with every inflicted blow until she hit the floor.
Severely injured, she pretended to be dead as her burqa fell softly over her face and she kept her eyes closed. She could hear shoving noises in the room as it was ransacked, and as her husband returned from the bathroom, he too was mercilessly assaulted by the intruders.
Ibtisaan, the mother of Williams’ two children, narrowly escaped a similar fate with a knife when she confronted the intruders. She, however, managed to lock herself and her children inside the house. Mr Dennis, meanwhile, died while his wife narrowly escaped death.
Although Williams and Davids denied any involvement in the attacks, Williams was captured on the CCTV surveillance cameras, driving his bakkie towards the house. He was seen dropping off the two men whom he hired. He waited for them, and moments after the attack, the two assailants were captured running back to the bakkie of Williams and getting in front next to him.
Judge Gayaat da Silva Salie said Kulsoem Dennis and the deceased were attacked, with the severity of the injuries to both indicative of the intent to kill them. Although the television set was moved from the wall fitting and a bicycle was moved, the intruders left only with their cell phones. This indicates that they were disturbed and had to escape over the wall.
Given Ibtisaan’s entrance upon the scene and locking the sliding door, the intruders had to leave only with items that could be quickly taken over the wall. They dumped the knife and the deceased's white sock, which was over the handle of the knife.
The accused could not adequately explain the overwhelming evidence implicating them as the perpetrators. The only reasonable inference to be drawn is that Davids was one of the killers who broke into the house, having been hired by Williams, the judge said.