Mother of shooting victim files contempt of court charge against policewoman

ALMOST three years after her daughter was shot and killed by her ex-boyfriend whom she had sought a protection order against, a Durban mother has opened a contempt of court charge against the policewoman who allegedly failed to remove his firearm. 

Sasha Lee Monique Shah, 25, of uMhlanga, was gunned down by her ex-boyfriend, Kyle Inderlall, 25, of Phoenix, in the parking lot at the Gateway Shopping Mall on October 30, 2022, just over a month after she was granted an interim protection order against him.

On November 3, he was expected to appear in court for the order to be defended before its finalisation.

However, Inderlall shot her several times while she was seated in her vehicle then turned the gun on himself.

Last week, Jessica Shah, her mother, opened a case of contempt of court against the police captain based in the Phoenix SAPS’s domestic violence unit for allegedly failing to execute legal duty and perjury.

During a State inquest, which commenced in December 2023, several witnesses who took the stand, gave detailed accounts of the events surrounding the shooting. A ballistic report, which was presented to the court, confirmed that the firearm belonged to Inderlall.

Shah, who also testified, questioned how Inderlall had been in possession of the firearm, which was meant to be removed by the police officer who had served him with an interim protection order by another woman in 2021, and her daughter in 2022.

At the time, the magistrate called for the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) to further investigate the allegations.

Speaking to the POST this week, Shah said over a year later, still no action had been taken.

“The magistrate instructed that the transcript from the inquest be sent to the DPP for them to make a decision on whether to prosecute anyone else in the matter. But there hasn’t been any progress since then.  

“My daughter was murdered in cold blood because a policewoman failed to remove a licensed firearm that a magistrate instructed be done. The law is in place. It is in black and white, so I cannot understand why it is not being implemented. Is justice for a chosen few? Why is the police officer being protected when she has clearly done something wrong?,” she said. 

Shah said she also wrote to the ministers of police and justice, as well as the KZN police commissioner, among others, after she was informed that the case would be investigated by the Phoenix SAPS. 

She said she had initially opened the case at the Durban North SAPS. 

“I received an SMS stating that the case would be transferred to Phoenix SAPS - where the policewoman is stationed. How is that ethical?  I have requested the station be changed to ensure a fair chance of justice for my child.

“To the police my daughter means nothing and is just another statistic. But to me, she was my world. Who will fight for justice for her, if not me? She is lying in a grave. She has no voice. I am her voice. With God and those on my side I believe that justice will be served, so that no other woman has to be murdered because a law enforcement officer failed to remove a firearm in a domestic violence situation,”  she said. 

The provincial police confirmed a case of contempt of court was opened.

THE POST