The KwaMhlanga Regional Court convicted and sentenced Gladstone Sipho Mahlangu (43) to 20 years’ direct imprisonment for the murder of his fiancée, Siphiwe Mavis Mokoena, and the attempted murder of her lover, the complainant in this case.

On Monday July 15, the provincial spokesperson for the National Prosecuting Authority, Monica Nyuswa, said the court sentenced Mahlangu to 15 years’ imprisonment for murder and five years for attempted murder.

He was declared unfit to possess a firearm in terms of Section 103 of the Firearms Control Act 60 of 2000.

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Mahlangu had children with the deceased, and paid lobola to her family.

“On February 24, 2019, the accused went to the deceased’s house at Thembalethu, KwaMhlanga, and found his fiancée with another man in the room, sitting on the bed. An altercation between the accused and the deceased ensued, as he wanted to know who the man was. He took out his firearm and fatally shot his fiancée in the head, before firing shots at the complainant, causing injuries to his ribs, shoulder and hands.”

Nyuswa said Mahlangu told the court he had accidentally shot his fiancée and acted in self-defence when shooting the complainant.

“State Prosecutor Bianca Harmse led evidence of the complainant and an eyewitness who saw the shooting taking place. Postmortem reports showing numerous wounds to the deceased and a J88 form confirming life-threatening injuries caused to the complainant were exhibited. The accused was found guilty as charged.”

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According to Nyuswa, Harmse argued that the court should reject the accused’s version due to the overwhelming evidence presented by the State that he intentionally shot the deceased and was never in any danger when shooting at the complainant.

“The State asked the court not to deviate from the prescribed minimum sentence on the murder charge, as there were no substantial or compelling circumstances presented during the trial.”

Nyuswa said the deceased’s father testified in aggravation of the sentence, and said losing his daughter has negatively affected the whole family, as they now have the burden of taking care of the deceased’s children.

He said he would never forgive the accused for what he did to his daughter.