POLOKWANE – A soldier based at the Polokwane Military Base has been sentenced to life imprisonment for murder, unlawful possession of firearm and ammunition, possession of a prohibited firearm and defeating the ends of justice.
Maesela Lucas Ledwaba (53) shot and killed is wife Pheladi Beauty Ledwaba while she was asleep in their marital home on October 15, 2019 following an argument.
His three children were sleeping in the same bedroom when the murder happened.
NPA regional spokesperson Mashudu Malabi-Dzhangi said the accused cleaned up the scene and removed the cartridge from the gun on the morning of the incident. He then covered the deceased with a blanket and locked her in their room before handing over his licensed firearm to the police in the presense of two of his children.
“During trial in the Limpopo High Court: Polokwane Division, Ledwaba pleaded not guilty to the offence but the court found him guilty,” Malabi-Dzhangi’s statement read.
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In aggravation of the sentence, Advocate Lerato Mohlaka argued that despite being employed as a soldier in the Polokwane Military Camp and a law enforcement officer, Ledwaba killed the mother of his three minor children.
Ledwaba also had a maintenance court order issued against him in April 2022 for an amount of R2 010 proving that he was not financially responsible for the children, who are in the care of their paternal aunt.
“The accused is not a primary caregiver, he did not financially contribute to the funeral of his wife, nor apologise to her family and children. He demonstrated no remorse during the trial and subjected his children to testify. He cannot be branded as a father as he caused his children to be orphaned,” Mohlaka said.
The state further argued that there were no compelling and substantial circumstances warranting a deviation from the minimum sentence ordained by the legislation of life imprisonment.
“The murder was meticulously planned, he went as far as sourcing a firearm, other than the one he was issued a license for and used it. He tempered with the scene and removed the spent cartridges and went to the police station and cried as a victim. This type of Gender Based Violence has no room in our communities. The children of the deceased are left without a mother, and now a father,” Malabi-Dzhangi said.
Judge President Ephraim Makgoba ordered the sentence to run concurrently with the other counts.
