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Anni Dewani Age, Death, Husband, Family, Biography & More

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Husband: Shrien Dewani
Nationality: Swedish
Hometown: Mariestad, Sweden

Anni Dewani

Bio/Wiki
Birth nameAnni Ninna Hindocha [1]Daily Mail
Full nameAnni Ninna Dewani [2]The Hindu
ProfessionEngineer
Famous forBeing murdered while on her honeymoon in South Africa after the taxi in which 'Anni Dewani' and her husband 'Shrien Dewani' were travelling was hijacked.
Physical Stats & More
Eye ColourBrown
Hair ColourBrown
Personal Life
Date of Birth12 March 1982 (Friday)
BirthplaceMariestad, Sweden
Date of Death13 November 2010
Place of DeathGugulethu, South Africa
Age (at the time of death) 28 Years
Death CauseGunshot to neck [3]Daily Mail
Zodiac signPisces
NationalitySwedish
HometownMariestad, Sweden
Relationships & More
Marital Status (at the time of death)Married
Affairs/BoyfriendsShrien Dewani
Marriage Date29 October 2010
Anni Dewani on her wedding day
Family
HusbandShrien Dewani
Anni Dewani with her husband
ParentsFather- Vinod Hindocha
Mother- Nilam Hindocha
Anni Dewani's sister, Ami Denborg (left), brother Anish Hindocha (second left at rear), father Vinod Hindocha (second right) and mother Nilam Hindocha (right)
Uncle- Ashok Hindocha
SiblingsBrother- Anish Hindocha
Sister- Ami Denborg

Anni Dewani

Some Lesser Known Facts About Anni Dewani

  • Anni Dewani was a Swedish bride who was murdered on her honeymoon in South Africa after the taxi which was boarded by Anni and her husband was hijacked, which later resulted in the brutal murder of Anni Dewani. She got married to the British millionaire and the owner of a nursing home ‘Shrien Dewani‘ on 29 October 2010.
  • In the early 1970s, the president of Uganda expelled all the Asians from his country, and Anni Hindocha’s family was one of them. Soon, they moved to Sweden and got settled in Mariestad. Anni was born and brought up in Mariestad, Sweden.

    A childhood picture of Anni Dewani

    A childhood picture of Anni Dewani

  • Anni Hindocha was working in Sweden as a product designer.
  • In 2009, Anni Hindocha met Shrien Dewani through a mutual friend. In the following year, she moved to the United Kingdom and got engaged to him in May 2010. On 29 October 2010, they got married to each other at Lake Powai near Mumbai, India. During the same time, the couple was deciding to throw a reception party in 2011 to those who could come to attend their marriage from India.
  • On 7 November 2010, Anni and her husband landed at the Cape Town International Airport and boarded a new flight to the Kruger National Park in South Africa. They stayed there for four nights. On 12 November 2010, they came back to the Cape Town International Airport where they took the taxi of Zola Tongo who dropped them at Cape Grace Hotel, South Africa.
  • Till 13 November 2010, the couple used the taxi of Tongo to roam around the city. They went to a BBQ restaurant (Mzolis) at Gugulethu and then to Surfside Restaurant in Strand. They went back to Gugulethu after their meal. The two armed men hijacked the taxi of the couple when they turned the main road to the Gugulethu. The taxi driver Tongo was thrown out of the taxi after a short distance. The husband of Anni ‘Shrien Dewani‘ was robbed of his precious things including money and was thrown out of the vehicle by the robbers after driving the taxi for 20 minutes. Later, a local passenger on the road helped him to call the police. On 14 November 2010, Anni Dewani was found dead in the back of the VW Sharan taxi at Lingelethu West. She was shot on her neck. Later, it was found by the police that Anni Dewani’s Giorgio Armani wristwatch, a white-gold and diamond bracelet, her handbag and her BlackBerry mobile telephone were missing. [4]BBC UK

    The abandoned taxi in which Anni Dewani's body was found

    The abandoned taxi in which Anni Dewani’s body was found

  • In her post-mortem report, it was revealed that Anni Dewani died of a single gunshot in her neck that was passed by her hand. She was not sexually assaulted. However, there were signs of struggle and bruising on her leg. On 17 November 2010, her body was handed over to her family including her husband for the last rites. Her ashes were scattered by her family, after six months of her death, in her favourite area at Vänern lake near her home in Mariestad, Sweden.

    The family of Anni Dewani while scattering the ashes of Anni

    The family of Anni Dewani while scattering the ashes of Anni

  • The friends of Anni and Shrien once revealed in a conversation with a media house that they were both headstrong and often indulged in heated arguments. Reportedly, in January 2010, Anni ended up the relationship, but later, patched it up. Later, it also came into notice that Shrien had low hormones level that could affect his ability to have children. However, the couple wanted the children, and Shrien also agreed to undergo surgery for the same. Apparently, after the death of Anni, it was also elucidated that he had some connections to Birmingham prostitutes, and it was rumoured at the public places where he often visited that he had gay relationships too.
  • Soon, in the court trials, Shrien also admitted that he had connections with the Birmingham gay prostitutes and had bisexual relationships.
  • On 16 November 2010, on the basis of palm prints found on the taxi, Xolile Mngeni was arrested by the South African police. He confessed to the Captain Jonke of South African police that it was a case of hijacking, robbery, and kidnapping. He further stated that Anni was murdered by Mziwamadoda Qwabe in the struggle between the two for her handbag. He also named the other two conspirators of the robbery named Mziwamadoda Qwabe and gangster Monde Mbolombo. Later, Mziwamadoda Qwabe was also arrested by the police and he stated that Shrien and Anni Dewani were the victims of the robbery. However, after five hours, during the same day, he changed the story and stated that the murder was pre-planned by the husband of Anni. The taxi driver Zola Tongo also admitted on 20 November 2010 that the murder was planned by Shrien Dewani.

    A CCTV footage of Monde Mbolombo while talking to taxi driver zola Tongo in November 2010

    A CCTV footage of Monde Mbolombo while talking to taxi driver Zola Tongo in November 2010

  • In August 2020, the taxi driver Zola Tongo was sentenced to 18 years imprisonment at Malmesbury Prison. Under section 105A, Mziwamadoda Qwabe was sentenced to 25 years in prison in February 2011.

    A picture of Zola Tongo

    A picture of Zola Tongo

  • Xolile Mngeni was sentenced to life in jail. During his court trials, he developed a brain tumour, and on 18 October 2014, he died at the Goodwood Centre of Excellence jail.
    Xolile Mngeni was sentenced to life in the murder of Anni Dewani

    Xolile Mngeni was sentenced to life in the murder of Anni Dewani

    Shrien Dewani always maintained his innocence in court and blamed the three accused of murdering his wife Anni Dewani.

    Shrien Dewani during his court trials

    Shrien Dewani during his court trials

    In 2014, Shrien Dewani was cleared by the South Africa court from all the murder charges against him. [5]Daily Mail [6]Daily Mail It was in the news that the court stated,

    When Shrien was found not guilty, the judge in the trial said Mbolombo was not immune from prosecution. But he was never charged. He has been lucky to escape justice.’

    A snip of a statement by Shrien Dewani

    A snip of a statement by Shrien Dewani

  • In 2014, when the South African court cleared all charges against Shrien, then the sister of Anni spoke outside the court in tears to the media persons. She said,

    We came here looking for answers and the truth and all we got was more questions. We waited patiently for four years to hear what really happened to Anni… All we wanted was to hear all the events and the hope of actually finding that out has kept us, as a family, going. Unfortunately we believe that right has now been taken away from us.”

    Ami Denborg, Anni’s sister, with her brother and father, outside Western Cape High Court in 2014

    Ami Denborg, Anni’s sister, with her brother and father, outside Western Cape High Court in 2014

  • In 2014, Anni’s father wrote and published a book titled ‘Anni: A Father’s Tale’ about his experiences after the death of his daughter. At the launch of his book, he narrated the facts about his daughter and her happy life to the media. He said,

    She was full of life and energy. It was meant to be one of the most happiest moments of her life. We had to deal with her death and the fact that her husband was the main accused in the case. The verdict and the court case went against us and it is sad that Shireen walked free. As a family, we are still dealing with the ramifications of the case.”

    The coverpage of the book written by Anni's father

    The coverpage of the book written by Anni’s father

  • On 11 March 2015, Anni Dewani’s father severed his arm in a horrific accident when he was fixing a lift.
  • In November 2021, a documentary was released on Anni’s murder case titled ‘Anni – The Honeymoon Murder.’
    The poster of the documentary 'Anni - The Honeymoon Murder'

    The poster of the documentary ‘Anni – The Honeymoon Murder’

    It was telecasted on the Discovery channel on the 11th death anniversary of Anni Dewani. The story of the whole case was narrated by the gangster Monde Mbolombo to the television documentary team. [7]Daily Mail He said,

    Tongo came to me and he said “do I know any hitman?.”I was shocked.’ the husband, wants the wife to be killed.”

    Monde Mbolombo said that Tongo replied,

    So this guy wants his wife to be murdered and it must look like it’s a hijacking.”

    In the same interview in 2021, he said while tears in his eyes that he was not proud of what he did. He stated,

    I’m not proud of what I did.”

    Monde Mbolombo while speaking to the Discovery Plus channel

    Monde Mbolombo while speaking to the Discovery Plus channel

  • Anni’s uncle, Ashok stated about the joyful nature of Anni in a conversation with a media house. He narrated,

    She was very bubbly, very joyful. A very happy person. Always laughing, always making jokes, making everybody happy wherever she went. Still, today, we don’t know exactly what happened. But the question still bothered me, why kill Anni? That brings a lot of uncertainty. Guessing what happened and knowing what happened are two different things. We want to know what happened.”

References/Sources:[+]