UK news This article is more than 19 years oldFamily murdered 'to take over business'
This article is more than 19 years oldDrug dealer and plotters killed three generations, Old Bailey toldA convicted drug dealer and his accomplices murdered three generations of a family to take over their business in a crime "beyond belief", a jury at the Old Bailey heard yesterday.
Amarjit Chohan, 46, Nancy, 24, their sons Devinder, 18 months and Ravinder, two months, and Mrs Chohan's mother Charanjit Kaur, 51, vanished in February last year.
The prosecution alleged they were murdered in a plot which almost succeeded because their killers made it look as though they had left the country voluntarily.
Kenneth Regan, 55, of Wilton, Wiltshire; William Horncy, 52, of Bournemouth; and Peter Rees, 39, of Rowlands Castle, Hampshire, deny murdering the five.
Richard Horwell, prosecuting, described Mr Regan as the ringleader and as a fantasist who killed Mr Chohan, also known as Anil, so he could use his firm CIBA Freight to import hard drugs.
But the other two "played important parts ... and no doubt expected to be handsomely rewarded".
Mr Horncy was Mr Regan's "right-hand man" while the "younger and stronger" Mr Rees was recruited to carry out specific tasks. He knew how to operate a digger and helped bury the bodies, dig them up and dump them at sea.
"The most chilling feature of this scheme is that those involved ... must have realised that Anil Chohan's 'disappearance' may not have seemed credible if it appeared as though he had left his family behind," said Mr Horwell, pointing out that Mrs Chohan was bound to go to the police.
"Three generations of a family were executed - deliberately killed - because of the greed of these defendants."
Mrs Kaur, a teacher from India, was staying with the family at their home in Hounslow, west London.
The court heard Mr Regan had left prison in 2002, having served four years after being caught with 25kg (55lb) of heroin. He knew one of the Chohans' employees, Michael Parr, and began to spend time at the fruit and vegetable export firm in Southall, west London.
Many of the workers were friends with their boss, but one or two noticed that he "had become secretive, rather self-opinionated and less generous with staff". His relationship with Mr Parr appeared to be deteriorating.
Mr Horwell said Mr Regan was "extremely ambitious", but was living in a small home with his father after his release and was desperate for money. He had discussed buying the freight company prior to Mr Chohan's disappearance.
"While Anil Chohan was interested in selling the business, Regan did not have the money to buy it. So Regan decided to steal it," Mr Horwell said. He recruited Mr Rees to pose as a potential buyer and lured Mr Chohan to a meeting at Stonehenge on February 13 last year.
"In fact, Mr Chohan walked into a trap ... He was held against his will for several days before being murdered," Mr Horwell said.
By the following Wednesday, his family had also been killed and buried in the grounds of a house in Devon, owned by a friend of Mr Regan's, Belinda Brewin.
Mr Horwell said the plan had almost succeeded because Mr Chohan was "something of a chancer in his business life". He had served 19 months for tax evasion and ran his company chaotically.
It was the persistence of Mrs Chohan's brother, Onkar Verma, which ensured the crimes came to light. He contacted police and refused to accept that his mother, sister and her family would have vanished without trace.
Detectives became "less and less satisfied", with what Mr Regan and Mr Horncy told them about their dealings with Mr Chohan and police inquiries prompted the men to dig up the bodies and dump them at sea. Mr Chohan's body was found floating near Bournemouth pier. "It was that unexpected and chance discovery that brought this plan to an end," Mr Horwell said.
Mr Regan and Mr Horncy went to Spain, and Mr Rees was arrested not long afterwards. Police subsequently arrested Mr Regan in Belgium and Mr Horncy surrendered at Dover. Mrs Chohan's body was caught in a fishing net while Mrs Kaur's washed up on the Isle of Wight in November. The bodies of the children have never been found.
The case continues.
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