Mississippi businessman had son's wife killed because she was black

[CatWoman]

Bennet Reid dabbed his eyes when jurors announced Thursday they had convicted Chiman Rai of having Reid's daughter murdered eight years ago because she had married Rai's son.

The 68-year-old Rai couldn't stomach having Sparkle Rai as a daughter-in-law because she was black, prosecutors contended.

"For my daughter and my granddaughter, this is the best thing that could have happened," said Reid, who once thought the case would never be solved. "My daughter finally got her voice."

The jury — which convicted Rai in six hours — will return Friday to decide whether to sentence him to death.

For years, Reid said, he had no idea who stabbed and strangled his daughter in her Union City apartment while her 7-month-old daughter cried in another room.

He never suspected her in-laws and he had no idea why she had been killed a month after marrying Rajeeve "Ricky" Rai.

The case broke in 2006 when Clinique Jackson was arrested on unrelated charges and offered to help police solve a killing she witnessed as a teenager. She said she and a friend watched Cleveland Clark, now 51, strangle Sparkle and then stab her. Investigators soon tied Clark to Willie Fred Evans and later Herbert Green in Mississippi, where the wealthy Chiman Rai ran a neighborhood grocery.

Green, in his mid-60s, and Evans, 76, testified that they had hired Clark on behalf of Rai in April 2000. Green said Rai paid $10,000 and said he needed his son's new wife killed quickly. Prosecutors contended the elder Rai, a native of India, wanted it done because an interracial marriage would stain the family's name in caste-conscious Indian society.

http://www.ajc.com/news/content/metro/atlanta/stories/2008/06/26/sparkle_rai_contract_killing.html?cxntlid=homepage_tab_newstab

[Bluebear]

1. Oh my good god, no.

:cry:

[CatWoman]

2. and murdered her with the baby in the next room

:cry:

[Marrah_G]

8. I'm shocked he didn't have the child killed as well.

How incredibly disgusting. I feel for his son, grandchild and the poor daughter-in-laws loved ones.

Tragic.

[CatWoman]

10. however, there was talk of murdering Rai's son along with his wife

as the hitmen had a hard time getting to her while she was alone.

[anigbrowl]

3. Sad story... the human race has a long way to go

You'll know we've solved the problem when there's no market for 'forbidden love' stories. Don't hold your breath.

[BrklynLib at work]

4. Among the many ironies here is the idea that not long ago, Mr. Rai himself could have been a victim

of a lynching down in that part of the world.

[CatWoman]

5. I had the exact same thought

ain't America grand? :sarcasm:

[Blue_Tires]

7. reminds me of the "maid slavery" millionaire couple up in New York

the irony stings...

not only that, he studied at Atlanta University and taught at Alcorn State? man oh man...

[Blue_Tires]

14. he is old enough to remember that time

and has probably been threatened as a young man...not to play pop psychologist, but sometimes resentment can build up in those who are 'assumed' to be black by the culturally ignorant (and get the according treatment)...

One time I had this job in customer service, and one of my co-workers barely, and just barely kept her hatred of blacks in check when she was around me (I guess out of professional courtesy)...She was Portuguese and her family came to the U.S. when she was little, and across a cubicle, I listened in while she recounted to a friend all the 'nigger' slurs she had to endure growing up in her all-white neighborhood...I guess a lot of people feel that is the worst racial group they can (wrongly) be called a member of...She could put on a pleasant enough act when she had black customers on the phone, but absolutely seethed about them when the call was over (oh yeah, she also made it a point to tack on extra charges to their bills)

[orleans]

6. and look at all the motherfuckers that were involved with this, went

along with this, covered this up. my god.

[TahitiNut]

9. It's interesting that the story includes no quotes from the son, Ricky Rai.

I've got to wonder what happened to him ... and how he deals with this. Tragic and disgusting. The 7-month-old daughter would be nearly nine years old now. I can't even imagine how she'd deal with this.

[CatWoman]

12. Ricky is now remarried, and lives in Chicago

http://www.wlbt.com/Global/story.asp?S=5447626

[malaise]

11. Indian racism is well known

yet many of them make their money in African communities.

Another famous killing
http://www.justiceforjassi.com/

[Catherine Vincent]

13. Here's a pic of this murderer....