A 45-year-old man has been sentenced to life in prison for premeditated murder of his girlfriend, Tumelo Maria Mamogale.
The incident reportedly happened in October 2022.
Themba Mahlangu was found guilty and sentenced by the Mpumalanga division of the high court in Mbombela on Monday.Â
According to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), Mahlangu and Mamogale were in a romantic relationship and residing together in Mashishing in the district of Thaba Chweu.
NPA spokesperson Monica Nyuswa said the deceased’s neighbours heard her screaming and asking for help before they went to investigate.
“They found Mahlangu assaulting the deceased, hitting her with fists and bumping her against the neighbour’s gate,” said Nyuswa.
“The neighbours tried to intervene and the accused pretended to be listening.”
When the neighbors went back to their houses, Mahlangu started stabbing the deceased with a broken bottle and left her in the house unconscious.
“After realising that the deceased was no longer responsive, he left the scene, leaving the deceased fighting for her life. She later succumbed to her injuries.”
The police arrested Mahlangu on the same day of the incident and he pleaded not guilty to the offence.
He allegedly told the police that on the day of the incident, they were attacked by a group of four unknown men.
State advocate Antoinette Nkosi led testimonies of three neighbours who witnessed the crime.
A mother’s testimony
An investigating officer who worked on the case also testified, explaining to the court what he observed at the crime scene.
The officer’s testimony was supported by a postmortem report that confirmed that the deceased died of sharp force injury to the neck.
In a victim impact statement compiled by the deceased’s mother, she cited that she still cannot come to terms with the death of her daughter.
The mother told the court that she even lost weight and has now become both a mother and grandmother to her daughter’s children.
Before handing down the sentence, judge Sheila Msibi said the country is suffering high levels of violent crimes, particularly gender-based violence in domestic relationships.
