Two Nelson Mandela Bay men found guilty of murder after killing their partners received hefty sentences in the Gqebeha high court on Friday.
Luxolo Bandla, 33, was dealt the full might of the law and sentenced to life in prison.
In a separate case, Zamuxolo Jacobs, 34, was sentenced to 20 years behind bars.
Handing down sentence in the Bandla matter, judge Bulelwa Pakati labelled the killer’s evidence as the most ridiculous she had ever heard.
In his testimony, Bandla admitted to assaulting Ntomnoloxo Mkhosana with his hands on June 19 2022, but said she had stabbed herself while they struggled over a knife.
“Evidence against [Bandla] was so overwhelming that he had no option but to fabricate a false version of what happened [and] did not explain how [Mkhosana] had been stabbed with such force that the knife’s blade broke off inside her,” Pakati said.
Though alcohol had played a role in the brutal murder, Pakati described Bandla’s conduct as heinous and callous.
“I have difficulty comprehending way [Bandla] acted this way,” Pakati said.
Mkhosana died as a result of a single stab wound to her abdomen and was declared dead when paramedics arrived at the Airport Valley informal settlement.
Pakati said she could not find any exceptional or compelling reasons not to impose a life sentence and a further 18 months for assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.
Jacobs was convicted earlier this week of murder for his role in the September 9 2022 killing of his girlfriend, Zikhona Pompi, whom he stabbed in the neck after a drunken brawl at the KwaNobuhle house they shared for more than two years.
Jacobs, who had pleaded not guilty to murder, tried to convince the court that he was not in the correct state of mind when he stabbed Pompi.
He said the because he had been drinking heavily and consumed a large quantity of drugs on the day of the incident, which fuelled his anger and frustration, he deserved to be tried on the alternative charge of culpable homicide.
However, judge Nyameko Gqamana found that Jacobs should have had the foresight to understand that his actions could lead to Pompi’s death and convicted him of murder.
Jacobs was sentenced to 20 years in prison, with the judge saying there were substantial and compelling circumstances for the court to depart from the minimum sentence of life in prison.
HeraldLIVE
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