MIDDELBURG – The Middelburg Circuit of the Pretoria High Court sentenced a 35-year-old man, Philemon Ramatsikiso, to 12 years in prison for brutally killing a woman on May 9, 2010 at Nazareth in Middelburg.
The trail of evidence through witnesses revealed that Ramatsikiso and the victim were dropped off at his place of residence by their friends. The following morning, the body of the victim was found abandoned near a graveyard. It had 36 stab wounds. A thorough investigation by police revealed that Ramatsikiso was responsible for the death of the victim. He was arrested on May 27, 2010. He also pleaded guilty to the murder in court.
The provincial commissioner Lt Gen Thulani Ntobela welcomed the sentence. “We welcome the sentence even though we wish he could have received more years; however we have confidence in our courts. We believe that evidence presented before the court compelled the judge to arrive at this conclusion. We, therefore, accept the sentence and hope it will serve as a deterrent to other potential criminals,” said Ntobela.
In the same vein, the commissioner congratulated the members for working tirelessly and managing to secure a conviction. He said their hard work did not go unnoticed.
