Bongani Luke Sibeko (44) was sentenced to life imprisonment in the Mpumalanga High Court sitting last Friday in Middelburg for the murder of his wife.
The court heard that the accused was abusive towards his wife. She decided to leave their home in Kinross and became a domestic worker in Secunda for a period of two years, without her husband’s knowledge. In January 2016, the accused traced her whereabouts and went straight to her workplace.
Upon his arrival, he kicked the door and fired shots that led to the death of the defenceless woman. Neighbours heard the gunshots and the police were summoned to the scene where the accused was arrested.
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Senior State Advocate Ntsika Mpolweni led testimonies of three eyewitnesses, who told the court that they saw the accused kicking the door where the accused was working and fired shots. The post- mortem report showed that the deceased sustained gunshot wounds and the accused was found guilty as charged.
In aggravation of sentence, the state handed in a victim impact assessment which indicated that the deceased’s family felt betrayed by the manner in which their daughter died, in the hands of the man who was supposed to protect and safeguard her as his wife. The state further argued that cases of gender-based violence where men kill their partners has become a cancer in our society, therefore, courts have a duty to send a strong message to perpetrators of such crimes to fight the scourge.
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The court sentenced Sibeko to life imprisonment for murder, five years for possession of firearm and another three years for possession of ammunition. The court ordered that the sentences on all counts run concurrently, the effective sentence being life imprisonment.
