Johannesburg - The family of slain SBV employee Linda Matati are one step closer to getting justice, after nearly five years.
The alleged cash-in-transit robbery kingpin Happy Thabo Mosia, who was convicted of the kidnapping, rape and murder of Matati, appeared on Wednesday at the South Gauteng High Court for sentencing.
In the bid to sway the judge into giving Mosia a lesser charge, defence attorney Narbus Grove pleaded with the court to consider Mosia’s personal circumstances that he was the sole breadwinner and a father of eight children who are all depended on him.
“My client is 44 years of age, he is married with eight children ranging from the ages of 27 to six and he is the sole provider. He has now been in custody for four years,” he said. Grove asked the judge that the period Mosia has been in custody be considered when sentencing. He further asked that the kidnapping, rape and obstruction of justice sentences should run concurrently with the sentence for murder.
However, state attorney Pakanyiswa Marasela opposed this, stating that Mosia’s circumstances were not at all exceptional and that the delays were of his own doing. “It is of his own doing that the trial ran for four years, the state only postponed once. Each and every postponement was because of him, he was the one who needed to obtain legal counsel, and the court gave him four months to do so, leading to another delay.
“Mrs Sibuye is far from healing and I don't think she will ever heal from what happened. Now the accused today is crying about his children that he is supporting, what about Mrs Sibuye’s child. She will never see her child again, so justice must prevail in this matter and the accused must be sentenced according to the act,” Marasela said.
Speaking to The Star later, Matati’s mother Gloria Sibuye said she was glad that the case will be concluded next month.
“I guess today went well. However, I don’t think his concerns are founded and I don’t think that has to be considered. Even if he comes out, he has been a thief all his life. What is he going to do when he comes out is that he will go back to terrorising people,” Sibuye said.
She further stated that she does not believe that if Mosia got a shorter sentence he would be rehabilitated.
“He will never be rehabilitated because all his life he never worked. Why at 44 would he change? What will make him change? We are all motivated by our kids to change, and if he has been doing wrong, there’s nothing good that he will impart on his kids,” Sibuye said.
She said she will carry the pain of her daughter’s death forever. However, she was hopeful that the law will take its course and the case and judgment will motivate mothers in similar positions to stay strong.
Matati was killed in October 2016 and her body was discovered a year later in a mortuary in Bronkhorstspruit.
Judge Avrielle Maier-Frawley postponed the matter to April 7 for sentencing.
The Star