A REQUEST to have the preliminary inquiry into the murder of Michaela Harte (27) halted until a judicial review taken by one of the accused has been ruled upon was denied by the Mauritian supreme court yesterday. Lawyers for Avinash Treebhoowoon are attempting to have magistrate Sheila Bonomally replaced as the presiding official in the preliminary inquiry that is under way on the Indian Ocean island.
The inquiry is designed to see if sufficient evidence has been gathered by investigating officers to send Mr Treebhoowoon (30) and Sandip Mooneea (41), the men accused of Ms Harte’s murder, forward for trial.
Both men are former employees of Legends Hotel in Grand Gaube where the daughter of Tyrone football manger Micky Harte was on honeymoon with her husband John McAreavey when she was killed on January 10th.
According to papers which were lodged with the supreme court by barristers Sangeen Teeluckdharry and Ravi Rutnah, on behalf of Mr Treebhoowoon, their client is unlikely to get a fair and impartial hearing during the inquiry from Ms Bonomally at Mapou district court.
On the first day of the preliminary hearing on June 21st, Ms Bonomally declined to call Mr McAreavey as a witness to give evidence even though he was on the state’s list of witnesses for the preliminary inquiry.
According to the judicial review application, this curtailed Mr Treebhoowoon’s right to cross-examine Mr McAreavey. The application also claims Ms Bonomally refused the disclosure of documents to the defence.
Mr Treebhoowoon’s legal representative on June 21st called upon Ms Bonomally to recuse herself from the proceedings. This she has declined to do.
A representative of the office of the director of public prosecution told the court that the application would be resisted and they would file their response next Monday.
A request by Mr Teeluckdharry to have the preliminary inquiry halted in the meantime was subsequently denied by acting chief justice Keshoe Matadeen.