By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Alutha Pasile, the man convicted of the murder of Nosicelo Mtebeni, has been sentenced to 25 years behind bars by the East London High Court.
On Monday, the court found Pasile guilty of the murder of Mtebeni and defeating the ends of justice.
Pasile was also sentenced to 10 years in jail for defeating the ends of justice.
The sentences will run concurrently.
Judge Nomathamsanqa Beshe relayed some of the evidence that was presented to the court during the trial as part of sentencing, referring to the crime as something from a horror movie. She said Pasile showed no real remorse and it is the court’s duty to protect the rights of innocent people, with sentences that match the crime.
“One wonders what it will take for the message to sink that women and other vulnerable members of society are entitled and deserve to have their rights protected and respected at all times. Women have rights, right to equality, right to dignity and right to bodily integrity and so on,”says Judge Beshe.
Meanwhile in a new twist the court heared that the love messages on cellphone that were sent by accused – “I love you” and “I miss you” – seen by murder accused Pasile on the cellphone of his girlfriend, Mtebeni, sparked a jealous rage, which led to her brutal murder.
The East London High Court, however, on Thursday heard that the love messages, which made Pasile think she was cheating, had actually been old messages sent by him to Mtebeni.
In a shocking twist during sentencing proceedings, social worker Nomonde Stamper made the revelation in a pre-sentence report, which was compiled to help the court determine a suitable sentence for Pasile, .
In her testimony, Stamper told the court she interviewed Pasile, Mtebeni’s father, Kholisile, the landlord of the flat the couple shared, Phumeza Qwabe, Pasile’s cousin, Kunta Kente Miti, and Pasile’s aunt, Princess Dube.
She said Pasile was shocked to realise the truth – that he had killed her for something she did not do.
The Mtebeni family will meet to discuss ways to challenge the sentencing meted out to their daughter Nosicelo’s killer.
We are not happy with this sentence. He [Pasile] had time to go buy tools to dismember my child and he gets off lightly with the crime. We expected a life sentence. We will talk about how we challenge this as a family.”
Pasile’s father, Mandla, said he was heartbroken by what his son had done.
The Commission for Gender Equality’s chairperson Tamara Mathebula welcomed the sentence and urged courts to mete out justice with “speed and efficiency” in cases involving gender based violence and femicide.
“South Africa is experiencing unprecedented levels of violence against women and girls, and this calls for aggressive and speedy resolution of police investigations and court cases.
“With just less than ten years left before 2030 and the GBV scourge escalating at the current pace, South Africa will likely miss the Sustainable Development Goal target [to end gender based violence by 2030] and that will be a poor reflection of the country’s efforts in the fight against violence on women. That would render the country’s commemoration of Women’s Month and 16 Days of Activism as useless,” Mathebula said.
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Video Courtesy of ENCA.