By Kaya 959 Reporter
The Gauteng High Court has sentenced a man to 23 years for the murder of his girlfriend in June 2019.
Samuel Thokozane Sibeko was sentenced to a further three years for defeating the ends of justice when he hid the woman’s body under his bed.
In his plea explanation, Sibeko admitted that in the early hours of 26 June 2019, he strangled Mathapelo Alice Mbele inside his shack at Vlakfontein until she fell to the ground.
“He said that there was a heated argument about her coming home drunk the previous night,” says NPA Gauteng spokesperson Phindi Mjonondwane.
Thinking that Mbele was asleep, Sibeko went to sleep at a friend’s house.
When he came back in the morning, he saw that she was not breathing and he realised she was dead.
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Sibeko buries body under bed
Sibeko covered Mbele’s body with a blanket and after five days decided to bury her under his bed.
“When people asked about her whereabouts, Sibeko told them she went job-hunting and never came back,” says Mjonodwane.
Sibeko continued sleeping over at his friend’s home but would go over to his shack on weekends to check if the grave under his bed was not discovered.
In August, Sibeko confided to a friend about the murder and asked the friend to tell the police. When SAPS arrived at the scene, he pointed out Mbele’s grave.
Mjonondwane says Sibeko pleaded guilty to all counts and following the state’s acceptance of his plea, the court found him guilty on all counts.
In handing down the sentence, the judge remarked that the court must make it clear that this behavior cannot be tolerated.
“Men must protect women. The court must impose a proper sentence. This was a gruesome murder. The accused did not take the court wholly into his confidence and therefore failed to show genuine remorse,” Mjonondwane says.
