Amnesty Hearings — Durban — 2000-07-26

SEGARAN RAMALU NAIDOO: Yes, I then, with due respect, what I won't do is go into each, my schedules of observations in respect to injuries, sex, age and race, if I just would move over to injuries.
	The most important thing, if I may summarise to say that ...

MS THABETHE: That is on page 28 of the Bundle.

SEGARAN RAMALU NAIDOO: Yes.

MS THABETHE: Page 24, sorry.

CHAIRPERSON: Sorry, 20?

MS THABETHE: Page 24.

SEGARAN RAMALU NAIDOO: If I may summarise at the bottom, on page 24, that specifically on the aspects of age, race, sex and stature, I confirmed by anthropological examination that the race was Negroid, not only from the type of hair that I took out of the skull, from the body, in the remains, but also from the general shape of the skull, cranium and facial skeleton.  I confirm that the age, well confirmed, I determined that the age from my assessment, was fairly young and under 40 years.   I also measured the stature, measured the bones, individual bones and especially the femur, the thigh bone, which indicated to me that this was a considerably short individual and again the bones showed features overwhelmingly of being those of a female.
	The final finding in this case was that I found features of a gunshot wound of the head, observed, and an object identified to be a bullet, discovered inside the cranial cavity.  It fell out as I was examining it.

MS THABETHE: From looking at the bullet wound on the skull, what was the angle?

SEGARAN RAMALU NAIDOO: It appeared to be a gunshot that was inflicted directly from above, it was at the very top of the vertex, very central, almost in midline, and directly from the top, at a 90 degree angle to a plane drawn at that point.

MS THABETHE: So would it be safe to say, would it be correct to say either the person might have been sitting down or the person shooting, was extremely taller than the person who was shot at?

SEGARAN RAMALU NAIDOO: Well, there could be several possible positions, depending on the way the deceased was laying, sitting, standing, leaning or inclined.

CHAIRPERSON: Or whether the head was nodded down or back?

SEGARAN RAMALU NAIDOO: That is correct, yes.

MS THABETHE: Okay.

SEGARAN RAMALU NAIDOO: But obviously, you  mentioned sitting, whatever position the deceased was, the gunshot was fired from above the head, so if sitting, the shottist would have been standing at least, from the top, if laying down flat, the shottist would have to come from the head side and shoot at that angle, parallel to the longitudinal plane of the body, so various possibilities.
	If the Commission were to suggest the possible scenario, then I could suggest whether this was possible.

CHAIRPERSON: And doctor, the fact that the remnants of a bullet was found in the skull, and that, does that indicate anything, or can you draw any conclusion from that?

SEGARAN RAMALU NAIDOO: You could draw one conclusion, and that is that the bullet energy which then would reflect upon the firearm capability, the fire power, was probably not a high velocity gunshot, it is probably low or moderate velocity or intermediate velocity gunshot, medium range.

CHAIRPERSON: Did you find any evidence of any injury inside the skull that might have been caused by a bullet, by that bullet, other than the hole that it made in the vertex, was there any other indication that you observed?

SEGARAN RAMALU NAIDOO: There was a fallout, if I may put it that way, a fallout, the fragile nature of the base of skull, just fell out as I was cleaning it, of the base of the skull.  That is, the base of skull that is at the roof of the nose, roof of the nose and slightly behind the ...(indistinct) sinus area and this could either be due to post-mortem erosion and degradation of bone or it could be that the base of the skull was fractured and of course, as it, the soft tissue completely disintegrates and it is completely absent.
	Whatever this soft tissue is holding it, it is disappearing, it falls out when you are examining.

CHAIRPERSON: Thank you.

MR LAX: Can I just ask one follow up question on that.  You indicated a possible trajectory?

SEGARAN RAMALU NAIDOO: Yes.

MR LAX: Given that possible trajectory, would one anticipate the sort of damage you have indicated?

SEGARAN RAMALU NAIDOO: Yes, you could.

MS THABETHE: What did you do with the metallic object that appeared as a bullet, after you had discovered it?

SEGARAN RAMALU NAIDOO: Yes, I gave it to, I handed it to Mr M. Moodley of our Department, who is a messenger-cum-technician, to take it personally to the Ballistics Unit in Amanzimtoti.
	I have been given to understand that Capt Richie examined the exhibit.

MS THABETHE: Would this appear on page 35 of the Bundle.

CHAIRPERSON: Repeat that page please?

MS THABETHE: Page 35.

SEGARAN RAMALU NAIDOO: That is correct.  Page 35 and the report goes on to page 38, so pages 35 to 38.

MS THABETHE: And would you summarise his findings?

SEGARAN RAMALU NAIDOO: Yes.  He simply confirms that this was a bullet and it was a fired bullet and he indicates the calibre as being that of a 7.65 calibre bullet.

MS THABETHE: Sorry, if the Committee would bear with me.

MR LAX: Just for the record, that last finding, is at page 37 under item 5.1.

MS THABETHE: Okay.   With regard to the other parts of the body, of the skeleton, did you find any fractures or anything irregular?

SEGARAN RAMALU NAIDOO: Yes.  I found several fractures and I read in the, on page 2 of my report, which is page 25 of the compiled Bundle, the last paragraph
"... the bones are extremely dry and fragile, crumbling easily beneath finger pressure and several bones show post-mortem erosions at the edges, including the ...(indistinct), vertebrae, pubic bones, ribs, both ...(indistinct), eroded blades and multiple ...(indistinct) of long bone.  The features do not suggest anti-mortem injury on the peripheral ...(indistinct) skeleton."
	I was of the opinion that this is most likely post-mortem artefact rather than trauma, injury before death.

CHAIRPERSON: Doctor, on that, just wondering, we have heard that the body was exhumed and taken out of the grave and then it was put in a bag and then it was transported, how would that bag be carried?  Did somebody put it over his shoulder, or would the bones move around in the bag during transportation, or would it be placed in a coffin and brought in that fashion?

SEGARAN RAMALU NAIDOO: In my experience I know that it would be usually handled by two attendants, one on either side, but there would be a fair amount of movement, rocking movement.  There would be certainly tumbling and disarticulation of the bones if they were intact.  I cannot comment on what actually would happen, how would they handle it, in a very careful way or not.  But I would think from my knowledge, that no particular care would be taken and that in the movement, it would be roughly moved from place to place.  I have seen this happen.
	And also in the transport, in the back of a vehicle, there would be a fair amount of bumping.  I know that normal fresh bodies do suffer injuries like that.

CHAIRPERSON: Thank you doctor.  Ms Thabethe?

MS THABETHE: Thank you Dr Naidoo.  Now, I want us to come to how you came about determining what the height of the person could have been.
	It is on page 28 of the Bundle?

SEGARAN RAMALU NAIDOO: Yes.

MS THABETHE: Can you inform us as to how you came to the conclusion that the body's height is between 1.35 to 1.42 metre in height?