Seventh accused admits to erasing chassis, engine numbers of Kevin Morais' car

KUALA LUMPUR: The seventh accused in the murder of deputy public prosecutor Datuk Anthony Kevin Morais told the High Court here today that he assisted the former second accused in the case to erase the chassis and engine numbers of the victim's Proton Perdana V6 car.
S. Ravi Chandaran, 47, said he and G. Gunasekaran, also known as Jay and had been released, erased the numbers on Sept 4, 2015, the day the victim was reported missing.
He said they did it at a workshop in Sunway Mentari after the car, with Kevin Morais at the wheel, was involved in an accident at Jalan Dutamas Raya here.
"Jay asked me how to eliminate identification of the car, I told him if it could be done by removing the car chassis and engine numbers. I asked him why and Jay said it was to eliminate identification of this car," said Ravi Chandaran during examination-in-chief by lawyer V. Rajehgopal on the 18th day of the trial.
Ravi Chandaran, who is the sixth defence witness, said the response by Gunasekaran (to eliminate identification of the Proton Perdana V6 car) shocked him as to his knowledge that would be done only on stolen vehicles, whereas the Perdana V6 car was supposed to be sent (to the workshop) for repair following an accident with a Mitsubishi Triton four-wheel-drive vehicle which was driven by S. Nimalan, the sixth accused in the case.
"Jay pushed me to remove the chassis and engine numbers. When I asked him, he said he is my friend and there must be a reason for it," he added.
Ravi Chandaran said he became suspicious of Gunasekaran and then went to an office in Berkeley, Klang, to meet a doctor.
Questioned by Rajehgopal, he said the doctor was Colonel Dr R. Kunaseegaran, who is the first accused in the murder case, to ask him about the removal of the chassis and engine numbers from Kevin Morais' car.
He also told the court that he had known Dr Kunaseegaran for some time and had introduced Gunasekaran to the doctor, who had also asked him (Ravi Chandaran) about removing a car chassis and engine numbers.
"I had a conversation with the doctor and asked him whether he had done anything with Jay without my knowledge. The doctor said they had done nothing. I told him to tell me the truth and thre Kevin Morais' car keys on a table in his (doctor) office.
"He asked me what it was about and I told him that it was Kevin Morais' car key, the DPP who handled your case," he said.
When questioned by Rajehgopal on Dr Kunaseegaran's reaction then, Ravi Chandaran said "he looks normal".
Ravi Chandaran said he also told Dr Kunaseegaran about the crash between Kevin Morais' car and the Mitsubishi Triton, but did not get any response from the doctor.
R. Dinishwaran, A. K. Thinesh Kumar, M. Vishwanath, S. Nimalan, Ravi Chandaran and Dr R. Kunaseegaran, 55, had pleaded not guilty to the charge of murdering Kevin Morais, 55, between 7am and 8pm on Sept 4, 2015, while the deputy public prosecutor was on his way from Jalan Dutamas 1, Sentul to No 1, Jalan USJ 1/ 6D, Subang Jaya.
They were charged under Section 302 of the Penal Code and faced the mandatory death sentence upon conviction.
Dinishwaran, 26, Thinesh Kumar, 25, Vishwanath; 28, Nimalan and Ravi Chandaran were represented by Rajehgopal, while Dr Kunaseegaran, 55, was represented by lawyer Datuk N. Sivananthan.
The prosecution team was led by deputy public prosecutor Saiful Edris Zainuddin.
The hearing before Judge Datuk Azman Abdullah continues on Aug 10. — Bernama