The Johannesburg High Court sentenced 39-year-old parolee Jacob Mokibe to life imprisonment for killing his friend’s niece in Soweto.

Mokibe was convicted of four counts ranging from abduction, rape, murder, and obstructing or defeating the administration of justice.

Mokibe was arrested for violating his parole conditions in March 2022, and while incarcerated, he confessed to the murder of 12-year-old Mathlogonolo Maditse and led the police to the crime scene. Her decomposed body was discovered on March 24, 2022.

Investigations revealed that before his arrest, a month earlier, on February 15, Mokibe waited for the minor at the school gate in Dobsonville and called her to inform her that her family went to the bushes to pray and that he was going to accompany her to where her family was.

The deceased followed the accused, as she regarded him as her uncle since he was her uncle’s friend. On arrival at a bushy area in Dube, the accused raped and thereafter strangled the 12-year-old to death.

Mokibe placed the deceased’s body in the reeds to ensure that no one would find her. He fled the scene and went to meet up with a friend.

During his court appearance, the accused explained that he killed the minor because he had feelings for her mother.

The court took into account this, his previous convictions, and the fact that he committed these offences while on parole, ordering that the accused be referred to Sterkfontein Psychiatric Hospital for a risk assessment to determine whether he could be declared a dangerous criminal or not for purposes of sentencing.

The report compiled by the institution stated that Mokibe demonstrated a high risk of re-offending and posed a danger to society.

In arguing for a firm sentence, State Advocate Rotondwa Phungo states that the accused killed the deceased most violently and brutally, though she trusted him and referred to him as ‘uncle’, cutting her life short.

He also presented a victim impact report compiled by probation officer Xoliswa Budaza, citing that Maditse’s mother has never been the same since the passing of her daughter.

She normally walks out when she hears schoolchildren return from school, hoping that Maditse will approach.

“GBV continues to wreak havoc in our country, and society has legitimate expectations that the perpetrators of these crimes will receive severe punishment.

“The NPA will continue prosecuting these crimes with the vigorousness they deserve.

“We applaud Advocate Phungo and Sergeant Rudzani Ratshothe for delivering justice to the Maditse family,” says Phindi Mjonondwane, NPA spokesperson.