Shrien Dewani trial: Reaction

We understand he's due to fly back - as a free man - to the UK tomorrow [Tuesday].

• Shrien Dewani is cleared of the murder of his wife Anni on honeymoon in South Africa
• Prosecutors claimed Mr Dewani had paid Zola Tongo to organise her killing in Cape Town in 2010
• Judge Jeanette Traverso criticised evidence from Tongo, saying it was unreliable
• Anni's family, who had called for Mr Dewani to give evidence, say they are heartbroken

The Independent has looked at why the murder case against Shrien Dewani was thrown out and in particular the problems with the prosecution case.

ITV's Rohit Kachroo looks as the "lies, errors and inconsistencies" surrounding the case and specifically the key witnesses.

The Telegraph examines how revelations of a gay double life and liaisons with male prostitutes could have helped Shrien Dewani's case.

Three men have already been convicted for their part in the murder plot. Zola Tongo, whose evidence was so criticised in court, was jailed for 18 years.

Mziwamadoda Qwabe is serving 25 years in jail. Xolile Mngeni was serving life for murder but died in jail from a brain tumour in October.

But now, there could also be a new trial as fixer Monde Mbolombo had his immunity revoked by Judge Jeanette Traverso.

South African criminal lawyer Milton de la Harpe said he was not surprised the case had finished early.

He said from the outset the prosecution had a weak case with a single witness.

"It is not an indictment on the criminal legal system [in South Africa] it was just a bad case," Mr de la Harpe added.

Mr Classen said he agreed with the view of Judge Jeanette Traverso, who said she was aware of public opinion on the case - but said it would be "anarchy" if this had any influence.

"People in this day and age feel it is proper to express their opinions and not to hold back. Judges cannot be swayed by public opinion."

Eddie Classen, a lawyer with BDK Attorneys in Pretoria, said the case had helped demonstrate South Africa's legal system was fair.

Mr Classen denied the evidence against Dewani was "embarrassing" and added: "The justice system is not just there to convict people, it is also there to acquit people who are innocent.

"The courts must be trusted. It is a cornerstone of any democratic society. This is a positive for the justice system."

When Shrien Dewani left the UK for trial in South Africa he flew out on a private jet from Bristol Airport.

Asked if there were chartered or scheduled flights due from Cape Town in the next few days, a Bristol Airport spokesman said he was "unaware" of any plans at the moment.

At the start of the day it was impossible to say how this would go... and impossible to say if it would take five minutes or five hours to sort.

As the verdict was delivered... all those suspicious hanging over Shrien Dewani evaporated.

Shrien Dewani's dream wedding to Anni Hindocha turned into a nightmare honeymoon in South Africa.

Bristol evening postCopyright: Bristol evening post

We explore how their life was turned upside down by the violent hijacking.

One email from Anni to Shrien showed the "strain". It read: "You did say if u saw in crystal ball how this marriage would been like then you wouldn't got married."

But hours later he replied saying "I did NOT say I regret things" and that "I love you. You know that."

The trial heard that Shrien and Anni Dewani's relationship was tempestuous, with emails and texts showing different sides to their marriage.

On messaging service BBM, the pair enjoyed risqué conversations. But emails showed there were arguments and Mr Dewani spoke of wanting to get out of the marriage.

The Dewani wedding in Mumbai took place over three days before 200 guests.

Mr Dewani previously said that South Africa was chosen for the honeymoon partly because neither of them had been before and partly because the acronym SA matched their initials.

They flew first class to Johannesburg and stayed at the five star Chitwa Chitwa game lodge in Kruger National Park, before heading to Cape Town and the Cape Grace hotel.

Gugulethu township, where Anni was shot, is described as "colourful, vibrant and lively" on Cape Town's tourism website.

But according to Africa's Mail and Guardian, more than 700 murders took place there in the five years before Anni died.

The township is home to about 100,000 people.

Mr Dewani was privately educated at the £11,000-a-year Bristol Grammar School, before going on to read economics at the University of Manchester.

EPACopyright: EPA

After qualifying as an accountant Mr Dewani began work at Deloitte in London, where he met his future wife through mutual friends.

He later returned to Bristol to run the family firm, PSP Healthcare, which operates eight nursing homes in the South West of England.

Mzwa Simelane tweets: Why didn't the state ensure that they had an airtight case before even initiating the lengthy and costly extradition process?#DewaniTrial

Outside court, Anni's sister Ami Denborg said: "The justice system has failed us."

As Anish Hindocha left court, supporters held photographs of his sister Anni with text reading: "You are in our thoughts and prayers."

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The Hindocha family called for Shrien Dewani to take the stand and give his side of the story during his trial.

In dismissing the case, Judge Jeanette Traverso said the only reason not to grant the application would be in the hope that Mr Dewani would implicate himself if he gave evidence.

But she said to do so would be "manifest misdirection".

Following the verdict that cleared his son-in-law, Anni Dewani's father Vinod Hindocha left Western Cape Crown Court.

Mr Hindocha, who called for Shrien Dewani to take to the stand last week, is consoled by members of the public.

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Shrien Dewani's family, including his parents Snila and Prakash, attended each day of the trial to support their son.

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Mr Dewani lived with his family in the Westbury-on-Trym area of Bristol before the wedding. Anni had been due to move in with them.

The Dewanis were described as "the main pillar of the Hindu community and Hindu Temple" in Bristol.

The Bristol Post says Shrien Dewani, a businessman from the city, was cleared after a "laughable" prosecution case while the Western Daily Press says the evidence was "roundly dismissed" by Judge Jeanette Traverso.

The Times in South Africa says "Dewani walks free" and the Cape Times says the Dewani family "burst into tears" at the verdict.

And South Africa's News 24 said "the ruling is a blow to the reputation of South Africa's State prosecutors".

• Shrien Dewani has been cleared of organising the murder of his wife Anni while on honeymoon in Cape Town in 2010
• The case was dismissed by Judge Jeanette Traverso, who said key witness Zola Tongo was unreliable
• Anni's sister says all the case gave the family was more questions
• Hindocha family confirms it will seek legal action against Shrien in the UK courts
• Mr Dewani will spend the night in the Valkenberg hospital facility

The Daily Mail is reporting that Shrien Dewani could attempt to sue South African authorities over an attempt to portray his sexuality "as a motive".

The paper says lawyers claim he "could seek damages for malicious prosecution".

South African National Prosecuting Authority spokesman Nathi Ncube denied the case had collapsed because of a "shoddy police investigation".

He said: "The judgment centres around evidence that was given by three people.

"Nothing has been said about the police, nothing was said about how the prosecution could have done better.

"The fact of the matter is that we were relying on people who were themselves involved and implicated in the case."

The Guardian reports on how the two families came together but how the union ended in tragedy.

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"He is inevitably described as a Bristol businessman but the Dewanis have global links and connections," the newspaper says.

But, the paper points out, "quite what Anni knew of his sexuality remains unclear".

Anni's family have said they will attempt to sue Shrien Dewani in the UK courts.

"We will now go through this case with our lawyers to confirm whether we can file a lawsuit against Shrien Dewani in the UK," a statement from uncle Ashok Hindocha said.

The South African State's case rested on the assertion that Shrien Dewani had asked Zola Tongo - a taxi driver he'd met 30 minutes earlier - to hire a hitman for him.

But how easy is it to find somebody in South Africa willing to commit murder for money?

According to one journalist, Sandiso Phaliso, it is very easy. He found three in one day.

Judge Jeanette Traverso spent almost three hours delivering her verdict today.

The decision means the case is thrown out without a defence having to be mounted in court.

The prosecution had alleged that hitmen had carried out the killing for Mr Dewani for 15,000 rand - less than £1,000.

Ami Denborg, Anni Dewani's sister, said outside court: "The knowledge of not knowing what happened to my dearest little sister... will be with my family for the rest of our lives.

"We hope no other family will ever have to go though what we have been through."

Ashok Hindocha, Anni Dewani's uncle, has released a statement saying the family "will always live without ever knowing" what happened.

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"We would have preferred that Shrien Dewani went into the witness box and told in his words what happened after he was accused of her murder," he said.

"We know now that he was having gay sex with male prostitutes and declared himself bisexual on the first day of his trial."

The Dewani family will not be making a statement on the steps of Western Cape Crown Court today.

Anni Dewani's sister, Ami Denborg said they wished Shrien had been "honest" about his "double life".

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In court, it was revealed Shrien is bisexual although it is not known if his wife Anni knew.

"We came here looking for answers, we came here looking for the truth. All we got are more questions," she said.

Shrien Dewani is believed to have left the court, without making comment, through a side entrance.

The BBC's Karen Schoonbee, who has been in court for the whole trial, says there is no right of appeal over Judge Jeanette Traverso's verdict.

The judgement brings to an end the legal proceedings in South Africa.

Outside, supporters for both families clashed over the case, with the Justice4Anni group again questioning Judge Traverso's role as presiding judge in the case.

It was the fourth anniversary of Anni's death during the murder trial.

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Her relatives, who had been attending court, prayed and lit candles at the site where her body was found in Khayelitsha township near Cape Town.

Shrien Dewani will spend tonight in the Valkenberg Psychiatric Hospital.

Mr Dewani has been suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder since his wife was killed.

South African National Prosecuting Authority spokesman Nathi Ncube told reporters: "It is unfortunate that Mr Dewani has been acquitted because we believe that he was involved.

"Justice is indeed about making sure that where there is a case we successfully prosecute it, and where we think there is sufficient evidence to take the matter to court we do so."

Monde Mbolombo, the hotel receptionist who was described as a "fixer", had been granted immunity over his part in Anni's murder after giving evidence in the case of gunman Mngeni.

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Judge Jeanette Traverso ruled he would no longer be immune from prosecution.

The judge said she didn't believe any of the men who carried out the murder would be so stupid as to do it for such little money.

As she began summing up her decision, Judge Jeanette Traverso said: "The only issue that I have to determine is whether the evidence shows that the defendant was part of that conspiracy."

Studio woo / bbcCopyright: Studio woo / bbc

Her conclusion was that no, the evidence did not show that Mr Dewani played a part.

Last week Anni's family begged Mr Dewani to "tell the world what happened the night she died", with her brother Anish imploring him to take to the witness stand and tell his story for the first time.

Leaving the Cape Town court after the judge ruled that would not be necessary, the Hindochas were clearly distraught and angry.

The story so far:

• Shrien Dewani has been cleared of organising the murder of his wife Anni while on honeymoon in Cape Town in 2010
• Judge Jeanette Traverso dismissed the state case saying key witness Zola Tongo was unreliable
• Shrien Dewani has left the dock and could leave South Africa today
• Anni Dewani's family say they feel "very sad" that they have not "heard the full story"

Taxi driver Zola Tongo was jailed for 18 years for his role in arranging Anni Dewani's murder.

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His sentence was reduced from 25 years because he agreed to testify against Mr Dewani as the State's main witness.

In her ruling, Judge Traverso said: "Discrepancies were a theme going through Mr Tongo's evidence.

"In some instances evidence makes no sense and the explanations are poor."

The state's key witness, taxi driver Zola Tongo, was described by Judge Jeanette Traverso as being unreliable.

She said his testimony was "riddled with contradictions" and "highly debatable".

The BBC's Rhiannon Beacham has looked at where the prosecution case went wrong.

After Judge Jeanette Traverso delivered her not guilty judgement, Shrien Dewani turned and walked out of the dock.

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BBC reporter Andrew Plant, at Western Cape Crown Court, says South African authorities will now have to organise to transport Mr Dewani back to the UK.

He was flown to Cape Town, after the UK government approved his extradition, by private jet.

Mr Dewani, from Bristol, was extradited to South Africa earlier this year to face trial accused of planning the murder of his 28-year-old wife in November 2010.

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The couple, who had only just got married, were kidnapped at gunpoint in Gugulethu, a township near Cape Town.

Mr Dewani, then 30, was released unharmed and his wife was found dead the next day.

Shrien Dewani gulped but didn't show any real emotion as the judge gave her decision.

His mother was in tears.

In a statement outside court, the family of Anni Dewani said: "We feel really, really sad because we have not heard the full story.

"Shrien lived a double life."

Here's the media amassed on the court steps waiting for freed Shrien Dewani.

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After the ruling Shrien Dewani's family embraced each other, clearly ecstatic at the outcome.

Judge Traverso said cab driver Zola Tongo's claims about the murder of Anni Dewani were "riddled with contradictions" and "highly debatable".

The judge said the evidence presented by the prosecution fell "far below the threshold" of what a reasonable court could convict on.

In her ruling, Judge Jeanette Traverso criticised the evidence of the main prosecution witness - a taxi driver who's now serving a lengthy prison sentence.

Shrien Dewani has been taken to the cells to prepare for release.

Shrien Dewani's family embrace and Anni's family leave court immediately.

The trial of Shrien Dewani has been dismissed. Four years after his wife was murdered, he is a free man.

We are bringing you the latest news and reaction after the case against Shrien Dewani was thrown out.

He had been accused of arranging the murder of his wife Anni in South Africa in 2010.