Four Convicted Murderers To Hang
Ookeditse Malesela | Monday February 11, 2019 14:35
The killers, Matshidiso Tshidi Boikanyo and Moabi Seabelo Mabiletsa were convicted in 2017 for the brutal murder of cab driver, Vincent Mopipi, stabbing him 44 times with a knife. Tshiamo Kgalalelo and Mmika Mpe, the former Gantsi farm workers, were also convicted in 2017 for brutally killing and burning their employer, Reinette Vorster.
For the cab killers, the CoA bench dismissed their appeal citing that the High Court’s finding of no extenuating circumstances was accurate. Handing down judgement on Friday, Justice Zibane Makhwade said the circumstances of court of quo came to the correct conclusion when finding that there were no extenuating circumstances and sentenced both the accused persons to death.
He explained that the prosecution submitted correctly aggravating factors of which included the fact that the murder was not committed at the spur of the moment but was premeditated.“This was clearly a planned murder. It is immaterial whether one or both accused persons physically inflicted the injuries that caused the death of the deceased (Mopipi). What is clear, however, is that they were jointly involved in the execution of the murder. The first appellant called the cab and the second appellant was in possession of a weapon that was used to kill the deceased. This was clearly a joint enterprise,” Makhwede said. Makhwade said there is no requirement in law that persons should have known each other for them to form a common purpose. He further submitted that the trial court found that it is the first appellant who arranged for a taxi to collect him from Tlokweng.
“It was further established that he changed the destination from UB to Block 9. The deceased was killed at Block 9. The murder weapon was found in the second appellant’s possession. There is no rational basis for holding that the first appellant parted with the deceased at Block 9 and then the deceased met with the second appellant who murdered him independently of the first appellant.
The first appellant’s version of events was rejected as false,” he said. Meanwhile, the other two killers from Gantsi had their death sentence confirmed, but the court was yet to give reasons for their confirmation. The duo that has been sentenced to death and nearly 20 years on other charges for the 2014 incident had hoped to overturn their sentence on all charges including murder, abduction and arson.
They were mainly challenging Lobatse High Court judge, Justice Abednego Tafa’s finding that there were no extenuating circumstances in the murder conviction therefore declaring the pair to hang. Kgalalelo, 33, and Mpe, 29, were in 2017 found guilty and were convicted of attacking their employer Vorster, stealing her Toyota Hilux valued at P300, 000, two cellphones and cash amounting to P11, 000.