Community members of Mokgoba in Etwatwa and the family of slain Daveyton SAPS officer Constable Prudence Masuku have expressed disappointment over the latest court postponement.
The sentencing proceedings against Masuku’s husband, Veli, and his co-accused, Lawrence Dlamini, were set to begin at a High Court sitting in Benoni on June 25.
However, the proceedings stalled due to the unavailability of the accused one’s (Veli’s) legal counsel.
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Masuku and Dlamini were found guilty on April 8 of murdering Prudence on June 23, 2022, in Mokgoba, Putfontein, while she was on her way to work accompanied by her husband.
She was seven months pregnant when the murder occurred.
During their court appearance, Dlamini’s defence lawyer told the court that Advocate Kanyane could not attend court because he was sick.
Judge Rasigamani Bhika then postponed the matter, setting it down for four days, from July 16 to 19.
Expressing their grievances outside court, community members said they had hoped the matter would proceed so that they could finally close a painful chapter in their lives.
The secretary of the Mokgoba Men’s Forum, George Sukazi, said: “We are unhappy with today’s outcome. We will be pleased when they are finally sent to jail to rot there. What the husband did was heinous. Why would you kill your pregnant wife? As a forum, we stand against GBV. We want justice to prevail.”
The case
In April, the Benoni City Times reported that the court also found the two guilty of theft, two counts of illegal possession of a firearm and defeating the administration of justice.
In her judgement, Bhika said the court accepted Sifiso’s testimony that Dlamini told him they had shot the deceased and that Masuku gave the firearm to Dlamini after the shooting, who then left Masuku at the scene.
“Sifiso’s testimony of Dlamini’s report to him is corroborated by ballistics. The deceased’s firearm was fired at the scene of the murder and was used to murder her. Exhibit D states that all cartridge cases from the scene were fired from the same firearm.”
The judge did not dispute the evidence that the firearm, with serial number P 48835Z, was issued to the deceased by the SAPS.
She revealed that on the morning of June 22, 2022, the commanding officer, Warrant Officer Lazarus Nhleko, did not check whether the deceased had her service weapon, but she also did not report it missing or stolen.
“The photos on Dlamini’s phone provide scientific proof that he was in possession of the deceased’s firearm on June 22. Kubheka said he saw a police officer standing on the side of the road and then saw a police officer lying on the ground,” said Bhika.
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