London, March 1:
As two teenagers – Mundill Mahil and Harinder Singh Shoker, were yesterday produced before a Magistrate’s Court here for allegedly murdering a young Sikh, NRI businessman, who was found dead in the boot of a burnt out car in south-east London, the UK Police have arrested another 19 year old man in connection with the case.
Harinder Singh Shoker, aged 19, of Charlton Park Lane, Charlton, and 19-year-old Mundill Mahil, of Regent Guest House, Maidstone Road, Chatham, who were in police custody after police got initial clues, were charged with Mr Singh’s murder.
They appeared at Greenwich Magistrate’s Court today (February 28) and will next appear at the Old Bailey for a plea and case management hearing on June 6.
21-year-old Gagandip Singh, President of the British Sikh Student Federation and one of the owners and CEO of Sikh TV, a fledgling broadcaster, was found murdered and his body was found in the boot of a car which had been set alight in what is understood to be revenge for his attempts to seduce a woman, The Daily Telegraph reported.
Mundill is alleged to have lured the owner of satellite channel Sikh TV to Brighton where he was killed. Both the accused, who had no relation with Gagandip, were also not related to each other.
Mundill, from Chatham, Kent, is a medical student at Brighton University and had allegedly started a relationship with another man.
She clutched a sleeve of her cream cardigan and held it to her mouth as she was led before magistrates yesterday. At the hearing in Greenwich, she also wore tight black trousers and a fitted green sweater.
The student is accused with Harinder Singh Shoker, 19, who stared at her as he was led into the dock and told to sit down. Only a prison guard separated them.
Shoker, from Charlton, South-East London, had a bright orange turban, wore a white sweatshirt and jeans, and spoke only to confirm his name.
District Judge Fiona Barrie remanded them in custody until further hearings at the Old Bailey. Members of the entrepreneur’s grieving family watched from the public gallery.
Ms Mahil was taken to Holloway prison in North London while Mr Shoker was taken to Feltham Young Offender Institution in Middlesex before a plea and case management hearing at the Old Bailey on June 6.
Another 19-year-old man was arrested today on suspicion of murder and is currently being interviewed by detectives at a south London police station.
Quoting a source connected to the case, the report said Gagandip Singh’s pursuit of an unidentified woman was believed to be a factor behind his death, although no firm motive had been established for the killing.
Yesterday it was believed the 21-year-old Gagandip Singh had given away over £12,000 to a student to pay for university fees. The Sikh TV CEO, of Bexleyheath, South-East London, had suffered severe head injuries, a post-mortem examination revealed yesterday.
The fire was discovered in the early hours of last Saturday by a passing police patrol. It is the second brutal death to afflict them.
Last night his family paid tribute in a statement saying: ‘Gagandip was a humble young man who valued a religion that promotes peace and spiritual service.’
Yesterday two bunches of flowers were left as a tribute where Mr Singh’s body was found in Blackheath, South-East London. Mr Singh’s family held a candlelit vigil at the scene where the burnt car and his body were found.
‘Embracing both religion and Western culture, Gagandip was known as a young entrepreneur and had taken the leading role of his family business since the tragic death of his father’.
A post-mortem at Greenwich Mortuary showed Mr Singh suffered severe head injuries and further tests are now being conducted to establish a formal cause of death.
Mr Singh founded the British Sikh Student Federation in 2008 and launched satellite channel Sikh TV last year.
Federation general secretary Kirat Raj Singh said: “He was 20 years old when he became man of the house. He invested the money and looked after the family.
“At 21 he was a CEO, he was a leader. He was quite remarkable.”
The post-mortem examination which took place yesterday at Greenwich Mortuary proved inconclusive. But tests did reveal that Mr Singh suffered severe head injuries. Further tests will now be carried out to establish the cause of death.
Gagandip Singh's Father
Gagandip’s father Charanjit Singh was shot in an apparent contract killing in India in 2009 over a business deal. Gagandip had become head of the family and had been arranging his sister’s marriage.
Mr Singh’s father, Charanjit, was shot dead in India during an alleged contract killing on September 28 2009.
The 42-year-old businessman, who ran an employment agency in Plumstead High Street, was in the Indian state of Punjab for a wedding when he was shot in the head outside a hotel.
According to reports, Indian police believe Mr Singh was shot by a contract killer, after he asked an associate, named in India as Kamal Kumar, to repay money Mr Singh had given him.
It is thought while Kumar was in England, Mr Singh gave him 3.5m rupees (£46,000) to buy some property for him in Punjab.
According to reports in India, Kumar used the cash to buy four plots of land, but registered them in the names of his own family.
Four people are set to stand trial in India over the killing.
