Sixth accused S Nimalan, 25, said he was informed by G Gunasekaran, who was also known as “Jay” that the drum would be used as a parking marker for the restaurant that he (Jay) would be opening.
He said Jay filled up the drum in front of a shop that was being renovated as a restaurant. At the time, he said, he was with another accused S Ravi Chandaran, who is also his uncle.
Nimalan said he and Ravi Chandaran had been relaxing at the shop for about half an hour when Jay returned to the premises in his Proton Perdana V6, followed by a cement truck.
“After that, the lorry poured cement at the front of the shop and I saw Jay paying the lorry driver before the lorry moved away,” he said during the examination-in-chief by counsel V Rajehgopal, who is representing five of the six accused.
However, Nimalan, who is also the fifth witness in the defence trial which entered the 10th day today, did not say whether the drum was the same one that was used to stuff Kevin Morais’ body in.
He said Jay instructed him to level the cement at the front of the shop to close up the potholes while Ravi Chandaran filled a small pail with cement and handed it to Jay to fill the drum.
To Rajehgopal’s question whether he had looked inside the drum while Jay was filling it with cement, Nimalan replied in the negative, saying he was only asked to level the cement at the front of the shop.
The witness said after the drum was filled with cement, Jay instructed Ravi Chandaran to paint the drum red and white.
Rajehgopal is representing R Dinishwaran, 26; AK Thinesh Kumar, 25; M Vishwanath, 28; Nimalan; and Ravi Chandaran, 47. Another accused, military doctor, Col Dr R Kunaseegaran, 55, was represented by counsel N Sivananthan.
Deputy public prosecutor Saiful Edris Zainuddin led the prosecution team.
Dinishwaran, Thinesh Kumar, Vishwanath, Nimalan, Ravi Chandaran and Kunaseegaran are accused of murdering Kevin Morais, 55, along Jalan Dutamas 1, Sentul, to No 1 Jalan USJ 1/6D, Subang Jaya, between 7am and 8pm on Sept 4, 2015.
They face the mandatory death sentence if found guilty, under Section 302 read with Section 34 of the Penal Code.
Gunasekaran, who was the second accused is now free after serving two years in prison. He changed his plea to guilty after being charged with concealing Kevin Morais’ body and destroying his vehicle.
The DPP’s remains were found inside a drum filled with concrete on Persiaran Subang Mewah, Subang Jaya, near here, on Sept 16, 2015. He was reported missing on Sept 4, 2015.
The trial before justice Azman Abdullah continues tomorrow.