The gruesome murder of Hogsback academic couple Prof Judith Masters and Dr Fabien Genin in their home in October 2022 shocked the Eastern Cape.
It was especially disturbing for the residents of the little town, known for its community-orientated lifestyle that sees a flurry of tourists visiting every year.
This week, two of the three men who murdered the couple were handed two life terms each for the double murder, five years for housebreaking and 15 years for robbery with aggravating circumstances.
The third man was sentenced to a third life term for raping Masters.
The bodies of Masters and Genin were found in their home by their domestic helper on October 3.
Their hands and feet were bound with cables.
Their murder shook the close-knit community of Hogsback, who, at the time, described the couple as generous and passionate about the environment.
They were murdered for money, after the suspects heard they had money on the premises, even though the three men were gainfully employed at the time.
Masters and Genin were world-renowned primatologists linked to the University of Fort Hare.
Their contribution to the study of primates was recorded in some of the world’s leading scientific journals.
Both continued their research after retirement and Masters had continued to supervise postgraduate students at the university.
Not only was the Hogsback community robbed of their sense of security, and families and friends left devastated by this horrendous crime, the greed and cruelty of the three killers has left the academic and scientific space poorer.
The community of Hogsback and surrounds is in a better place with Silindokuhle Mangali, 23, Sakhele Limba, 35, and Wanda Limba, 31, behind bars.
Though it does not bring Masters and Genin back, our hope is that life sentences will serve as a deterrent and send a message to all would-be criminals that their actions will catch up with them.
