Durban - An Inanda man has been sentenced to life imprisonment for killing his girlfriend and gunning down her mother in front of school children.
Thirty-one-year-old Sibongiseni Nyamazane had been in a relationship with Nomathamsanqa Mntungwa, who was last seen in his company on February 20, 2014.
That day she had gone to court to seek a protection order against him and was reported missing when she did not return home on the same day.
Four days later, Nyamazane fatally shot Nomathamsanqa’s mother, Thandiwe, at Oakford Primary School in Verulam as she was preparing to leave school.
The post-mortem report found that she died from multiple bullet wounds.
Mntungwa’s decomposed remains were found in a sugar cane plantation in Mount Edgecombe on May 23, 2014.
In passing sentence on Monday, acting Durban High Court Judge Mlungiseni Sabela described the murders as “atrocious”.
“Within a period of four days, he (Nyamazane) had killed mother and daughter. He kidnapped (Nomathamsanqa) and killed her. He left her in a sugar cane field to rot. While her family were searching for her, he shot and killed (Thandiwe) in front of school children at school premises. He seemed to believe he was untouchable,” said the acting judge.
He found that it was in the interest of society that Nyamazane be removed to protect society, to serve as a warning to like-minded people and also because Nyamazane had shown no respect for life.
The acting judge said there were no substantial and compelling circumstances to stray from the maximum sentence. He sentenced Nyamazane to life imprisonment for each of the murders as well as 10 years in jail for failure to report the theft, loss or destruction of a firearm.
These sentences are to run concurrently with the life sentence.
During arguments for sentencing, state advocate Vusi Xaba said both women were shot execution-style and that “nothing could undo this dreadful wrong”.
Xaba argued that the shootings were a show of power.
He also said the family buried Thandiwe Mntungwa without knowing that her daughter was also dead.
“The recovery of her skeletal remains was not thanks to (Nyamazane) but because of chance when someone came across her body,” he argued.
Nyamazane’s lawyer, advocate Shan Govender, said his client appealed for a non-custodial sentence, but should he be sent to prison asked for a short jail time.
Govender argued that his client, who had a 3-year-old son with Nomathamsanqa, was a first offender and a young person who could be rehabilitated.
After the sentencing, Govender made an application for leave to appeal, which the acting judge denied.
Outside court, Nomathamsanqa’s uncle and Thandiwe’s brother, Mthandeni Mntungwa, said the family was glad the case had finally come to an end.
“We followed the matter when it was in the Verulam Magistrate’s Court and then on trial here in the high court. We’re happy with the outcome and the (acting) judge’s decision.
“The family has been suffering a great tragedy. To lose two family members in such close proximity has been difficult,” he said. He also thanked Xaba for his efforts.
Daily News