Johannesburg – Their children may have been killed or paralysed as a result of a drug-fuelled drag race, but two families of the six victims of rapper Molemo “Jub Jub” Maarohanye and his friend Themba Tshabalala have forgiven the duo.
This is believed to have played a crucial role in the pair being paroled on Thursday.
On March 8, 2010, they crashed into a group of school pupils while driving under the influence of drugs and racing on a public road.
The pair were initially each sentenced to 20 years in prison but this was reduced to 10 years after their murder conviction ruling was overturned and they were convicted of culpable homicide in 2014.
But a well-placed correctional services insider said two of the families of victims had accepted the decision to release the pair after meeting them at a hearing.
Department spokesperson Singabakho Nxumalo said he was unable to comment on this, and could only confirm that families of the victims had been contacted.
“Before parole is granted, we invite the families of victims to make an input. We ask them if they’ve reconciled or if they would like to reconcile with the parolee,” said Nxumalo.
The source said: “Two families were involved in the process and said they were fine with the two being released. They spoke to Maarohanye and Tshabalala and through that, they say, some facts came to light that were not mentioned during the trial.”
The Star understands that one of the families lost a child in the incident and and the other had a loved one that was left paralysed. It was also understood that one of the men had pledged to assist the family of the paralysed child.
In a statement, Nxumalo earlier said the pair were released on parole after Correctional Supervision and Parole Boards (CSPBs) of Leeuwkop and Baviaanspoort considered their application.
The two were both classified as “first-time offenders with a positive support system”.
“They participated in relevant correctional programmes and were further assessed by our special services experts, which among others, include social workers and psychologists to determine their suitability for parole placement,” the department said.
Maarohanye’s lawyer Rudi Krause said: “I don’t think I am at liberty to discuss what happened in the parole hearing. I can, however, confirm that in accordance to the parole hearing procedure, there is a victim offender dialogue and can confirm that this happened in this instance.”
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