The traffic officer from Mamelodi pleaded guilty to the charges and claimed he did not plan to kill his wife.
The high court in Pretoria has sentenced a Gauteng provincial traffic officer to life plus seven years’ direct imprisonment for the 2024 murder of his wife.
Zakhele Bennet Hlongwane, 53, from Mamelodi, was handed down a life sentence for the premeditated murder of Tili Desire Ngoben, 33, five years for pointing a firearm and two years for malicious property damage.
The court ordered that the sentences run concurrently with the life sentence and further declared him unfit to possess a firearm.
Children witness mother’s murder
At around 5am on 1 April 2024, Hlongwane went to Ngobeni’s home in Mamelodi and kicked down the door.
Hlongwane then shot his wife multiple times in the presence of their two children, aged three and five.
Ngobeni’s cousin came out of his room after hearing the gunshots.
He was confronted by Hlongwane, who pointed a firearm at him.
The traffic officer then handed himself over to the Mamelodi Police Station an hour later.
He has been remanded in custody since.
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‘law enforcement officer expected to uphold law and protect family’
National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Lumka Mahanjana said Hlongwane pleaded guilty to murder and pointing a firearm.
He claimed he was overwhelmed by anger and did not plan to kill his wife.
“His legal representative requested the court to deviate from the prescribed minimum sentence, arguing that Hlongwane handed himself over, is a first-time offender, and showed remorse by writing apology letters to the deceased’s family and the community,” Mahanjana said in a statement on Friday.
However, state advocate Vusimuzi Tshabalala countered that Hlongwane’s apologies were expressions of regret rather than genuine remorse.
He said they were only made after his conviction.
“[Tshabalala] argued that as a law enforcement officer, husband, and father, Hlongwane was expected to uphold the law and protect his family, but instead betrayed their trust, violated the deceased’s right to life, and traumatised his children,” Mahanjana said.
“Advocate Tshabalala emphasised that femicide remains a highly prevalent crime in South Africa, and no level of anger can justify such brutality.”,
He urged the court to impose a life sentence.
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A brutal and careless murder
Delivering judgement, Judge Mashudu Munzhelele noted that Hlongwane failed to show genuine remorse.
She also pointed out that he was convicted of a serious and prevalent offence.
Munzhelele described the crime as extremely brutal and careless, committed against the very person he was expected to love and protect.
“As a law enforcement official, he was expected to uphold the law and not violate it as he did,” the judge said.
“Imposing a lesser sentence would undermine the severity of this offence,” she added,
Advocate Marika Jansen van Vuuren, acting Director of Public Prosecutions in Gauteng, said the importance of human life can never be overemphasised.
“The NPA will continue to pursue such cases vigorously to ensure justice for victims and to serve as a deterrent to would-be offenders,” Van Vuuren said.
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