Julie Rajpaul murder case: Daughter testifies about her mother’s final hours

On the night of October 26, 2023, Julie Rajpaul, a 48-year-old correctional services officer from Westville Prison, was found dead in her North Beach flat. Her daughter, Sasha Rajpaul, testified at the Durban Regional Court that she had heard her mother pleading with her partner, Ashley Mahadeo, to let her go hours before her death.

According to Sasha, her mother had said, "If anything happened to her, 'he did it'." Six hours later, police contacted Sasha, informing her that her mother had committed suicide. This contradicted the earlier belief that Rajpaul had used a jacket to strangle herself. Post-mortem reports confirmed that Rajpaul's death was caused by manual strangulation.

The State argued that Rajpaul's death was a result of physical abuse, as per the definition of domestic violence in the Domestic Violence Act. Sasha testified that their relationship had initially been good, but deteriorated over the years, with verbal abuse and arguments becoming frequent. The pair had moved from Tongaat to a flat in North Beach, while Sasha moved in with her grandmother in Tongaat.

Sasha recounted her last conversations with her mother, including a heated argument where Rajpaul repeatedly called out for Mahadeo to let her go. After the call ended, Sasha received a call from a police officer stating that her mother had committed suicide. Despite trying to reach Mahadeo, Sasha said he did not respond to her calls or messages.

During cross-examination, Rajpaul's attorney questioned Sasha about her mother's new place, an incident of her mother attempting to jump off a moving vehicle, and an alleged cliff jump on the South Coast. However, Sasha insisted she had held her mother, comforting her due to her crying, and was not aware of her mother's suicidal tendencies or any previous divorce from her father.