In a recent ruling, the Pretoria High Court sentenced two women and three men to significant prison terms for murder and robbery. The sentences were handed down to Lebogang Tshabalala (29), Everjoy Sibanda (22), Lucky Vincent Motholo (25), Kagiso Alfread Leleme Mathabe (24), and Kamogelo Modise (23) for the murder of a 38-year-old man in 2020.
The court imposed direct imprisonment sentences of up to 15 years for murder and robbery with aggravating circumstances. Tshabalala, Motholo, Mathlabe, and Modise received 15 years each for robbery with aggravating circumstances, along with 3 years each for kidnapping. Additionally, Mathabe and Modise were sentenced to 15 years imprisonment for the murder of the 38-year-old man. Sibanda received a 10-year imprisonment term, with 5 years suspended for robbery with aggravating circumstances and 3 years wholly suspended for kidnapping.
The Judge ordered that the sentences should run concurrently and declared the defendants unfit to possess firearms.
The crime occurred on October 27, 2020, when Tshabalala and Sibanda posed as prostitutes near a Sasol garage in Bokfontein. The victim, dropping off by a car from work, encountered them and engaged in conversation. Later, the victim returned to the women after withdrawing money, and they led him to nearby bushes where the three men were waiting.
In a horrifying turn of events, the perpetrators tied the victim’s hands, assaulted him, and demanded his PIN code. Attempts to withdraw money failed as the victim provided the wrong PIN. Subsequently, the victim went missing, leading to a police investigation. A partially decomposed body was discovered in the bushes.
The arrests were made in December 2020 and February 2022, and only Motholo pleaded guilty in court. During the trial, the two women sought leniency due to their pregnancies, but the prosecutor argued that Correctional Services Act provides facilities for pregnant women, urging the court not to deviate from the prescribed minimum sentence.
In delivering the sentence, the judge emphasized the seriousness of murder and the irreparable loss of life. The Director of Public Prosecutions, Advocate Sibongile Mzinyathi, welcomed the sentences and commended the work of the investigation office Sgt Leonard Mapataka.