Man sentenced for murder of son (1) and girlfriend in Free State
A one-year-old boy's body was found in a sports bag on top of his mother’s body.
The Free State High Court has sentenced Jonas Mokoena to 30 years’ imprisonment for the murder of his girlfriend (41) and their one-year-old son.
Bloemfontein Courant reports that the victims’ bodies were discovered last month in a shallow grave at an informal settlement in Qalabotjha, near Villiers, after residents reported a foul smell coming from their shack.
The baby’s body was found inside a sports bag that had been placed on top of his mother’s body.
Police spokesperson Josephine Rani says preliminary investigations revealed that Mokoena had been telling the landlord that his girlfriend and child were in Balfour, despite being seen at the shack around the time of their deaths. Following the discovery of the bodies, Mokoena went into hiding.
“The case was assigned to Detective Sergeant Ivy Maisa from the Provincial Serious and Violent Crimes Investigation Murder and Robbery Unit, who conducted a thorough investigation and gathered sufficient evidence,” Rani says.
Mokoena was arrested the same day by Villiers SAPS members at a hiking spot, while allegedly attempting to travel to Balfour.
He was charged with two counts of murder, subsequently convicted, and was sentenced on Thursday.
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Read original story on www.bloemfonteincourant.co.za
