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Cassim's June 26 testimony

MS BATOHI: Then why do you say you think Mr Cronjé was stringing him along?

MR CASSIM: I can't answer that.

COMMISSIONER: Do you think that from your knowledge of Sanjay Chawla, that he's the sort of man that will pay a substantial amount of money in dollars, up-front, and just allow himself to be strung along?

MR CASSIM: I don't know.

COMMISSIONER: Well, you know him, I don't, but I find from the little I've heard about the gentleman that that's very unlikely.

MS BATOHI: Mr Cassim, this number 83674 1416 is a cellphone number, which we gave to your counsel and asked him to ask you whether you knew whose number that was. Can you tell me whose number that is? We got some vague reply from you. Can you tell me, now having thought about it for quite a while, I think it's about a week or so, whose number is that, 83764 1416? Sorry, I beg your pardon?

MR CASSIM: It's a pre-paid card.

MS BATOHI: We've established that. It is a pay-as-you-go card. How do you know that?

MR CASSIM: Those two actresses were here from India and I gave both of them pre-paid cards. One to Renu and one to Amisha.

MS BATOHI: But this is your number.

MR CASSIM: Sorry? It's my number.

MS BATOHI: That's my question, Mr Cassim. This is your number, it's your phone number.

MR CASSIM: Yes, I bought the pre-paid cards and I gave them the cards, and I gave them phones to use.

MS BATOHI: And you kept those cards after they'd left and you used it?

MR CASSIM: I've kept the one, and the one I've destroyed.

MS BATOHI: I am not interested in the other one, I'm talking about the one number that I gave you. You kept that and you used it, is that correct?

MR CASSIM: That's correct.

MS BATOHI: ...calls to Mr Chawla on that phone? Or received calls from him on that phone?

MR CASSIM: I think so.

MS BATOHI: You said you destroyed one of the cards. What was the number of that one?

MR CASSIM: The one that I destroyed, I don't - can't remember the number, but I will tell you the day this came out I phoned Sanjay and I told him, 'What were you up to?' I called him from this - I - it was one of the pre-paid cards, I don't recall the number, but I phoned him and I said, 'Sanjay, what were you up to? You actually lied to me what you were doing.'

MS BATOHI: What did he say?

MR CASSIM: He had no answer for me, and from that day I've never, ever contacted Sanjay, and I wish to state categorically that if I ever get hold of Sanjay, I feel him sorry.

MS BATOHI: Did you tell your counsel that you phoned Mr Sanjay on that card when this whole thing blew up and asked him - or had a conversation similar to that which you just testified about?

MR CASSIM: I told it to Mr Blumberg while we were going home on Friday.

MS BATOHI: Have you any idea why that's not in your statement, because basically it supports your version that you had no idea about what was going on. You phone Sanjay and say, 'What were you up to?' Why didn't you put that in your statement?

MR CASSIM: I mean, I think I've got it somewhere along in my statement where I said I didn't know what they were doing.

MS BATOHI: That's not my question, Mr Cassim. Why didn't you put just what you testified about now in your statement? It lends credibility to your version that you had no idea what was going on. Why is that not in your statement? This last -this call to Sanjay to say, 'What were you doing?', why is it not in your statement?

MR CASSIM: I can't tell you why I didn't put it in my statement.

MS BATOHI: Why did you destroy one of those cards? Pay-as-you-go cards. Which one did you destroy? Is it this one, the number which I gave to you, or is it the other one that you don't remember?

MR CASSIM: It's - I - it's probably this one.

MS BATOHI: Why did you do that, because the amazing thing is that calls to this number stop on the 11th of April. That was the day Mr Cronjé made the revelations. Why did you destroy that card?

MR CASSIM: I thought Sanjay would call me again on that number. And in actual fact, it was a pre-paid card so I didn't need it again. I just threw it away.

MS BATOHI: Why did you do that? And the strange thing is that calls to that number stop on the 11th of April, the same day that we get the bombshell from Mr Cronjé, you destroy that card. Why?

MR CASSIM: I was very upset with Sanjay.

MS BATOHI: You're upset with Sanjay and you destroy the card?

MR CASSIM: Yes.

MS BATOHI: Explain that please. What had the destruction of the card to do with your being upset with Sanjay?

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