Former maid testifies that she heard woman’s voice twice at farm

SHAH ALAM: A former domestic helper told the High Court here that she heard a woman screaming twice on the night cosmetics millionaire Datuk Sosilawati Lawiya and three others were believed to have been murdered.

Siti Hamidah Karnax, 18, testified that she heard the screams while helping her employer's wife, known as Jacintha, prepare tosai at about 9pm on Aug 30 last year (Jacintha is the wife of the fourth accused, R. Kathavarayan, also known as Ravi).

Siti Hamidah said she did not react to the screams which were about one to two seconds apart, and continued helping Jacintha.

The domestic helper, who worked at a farm in Tanjung Sepat for nine months, was arrested on Sept 9 last year along with Filipina Lolita Serna Ondoy (pic) and is currently in a witness protection programme under the Prime Minister's Department.

The Indonesian from Sunda said that earlier on the same day, she saw Jacintha receiving a phone call at about 4pm.

“She appeared nervous and ordered all the workers to go inside the living quarters at the farm before 5pm.

“No one was allowed to go outside without her permission or Ravi's,” she said.

She added that Jacintha later ordered her to collect a pail, turmeric, shampoo, two T-shirts, a pair of track bottoms, talcum powder and towel, and to leave the items outside the house door.

Siti Hamidah said that at about 7pm, she saw three men and a woman entering the farm but could not recognise them.

“I only saw them from behind.

“The woman had long hair and was wearing a blue jacket,” she said during examination-in-chief by deputy public prosecutor Idham Abd Ghani.

She said it was past midnight when she saw a blazing fire near the second accused T. Thilayalagan's house, describing this as “tall as the oil palm trees nearby.”

She was testifying in the trial of former lawyer N. Pathmanabhan, 42, and three of his farm hands, Thilaiyalagan, 20, R. Matan, 21, and Kathavarayan, 31.

The four have claimed trial to the murders of Sosilawati, 47, her driver Kamaruddin Shamsuddin, 44, bank officer Noorhisham Mohammad, 38, and lawyer Ahmad Kamil Abdul Karim, 32.

Siti Hamidah disagreed with defence counsel Manjeet Singh Dhillon's suggestion that it had been raining on the night of the fire.

When re-examined by another defence counsel, Ravi Nekoo, she denied that she was testifying out of revenge as she had been beaten by Kathavarayan, Jacintha and Pathmanabhan's wife.

“I don't have any motive testifying against anyone,” said Siti Hamidah.

She also disagreed with Ravi Nekoo's suggestion that it was common practice for her former employer Kathavarayan to mandi kunyit.

“He only mandi kunyit whenever there was a fire,” she said.