After a traumatic three year wait, the families of Piet Maré and Venktas Govender finally have seen justice served.
Three men were found guilty and convicted of the heinous double murders that shocked the town of Dannhauser in September 2015.
Sabela Bonginkosi Kubheka, Sandiso Mabaso and Sipho Hlatshwayo were sentenced to five years imprisonment for kidnapping, 15 years imprisonment for robbery with aggravated circumstances and life imprisonment for the two murders. The sentences will run concurrently.
Venktas Govender, affectionately known as Uncle Vee, went missing on September 2. The following morning, his beaten and bruised body was discovered in a veld. His clothes were folded neatly next to his body and his vehicle was discovered later near Mafusini. He was laid to rest on Friday, September 4.
That same Friday, Durnacol shop owner, Piet Maré, was brutally stabbed while locking up his store.
Mr Maré was rushed to hospital where he sadly passed away the following morning. The double murders stunned the small town, which lost two iconic community members in the space of two days.
Two men, believed to be behind a string of crimes in the area, were arrested by police. They, in turn, led police to two other men. Investigations continued and soon another person was arrested.
Sabela Bonginkosi Kubheka, Sandiso Mabaso, Mondli Brian Gumede, Bonginkosi Sithebe and Sipho Hlatshwayo then appeared in court for the murders. Bonginkosi Sithebe, Brian Gamede and Sabela Khubeka were also part of a group of men who escaped from the Dundee Prison in November 2015, while awaiting trial. They were swiftly rearrested.
The trial continued over the next two years, as constant postponements and delays left family members worried that they would never see justice served. On March 9, Sabela Bonginkosi Kubheka, Sandiso Mabaso and Sipho Hlatshwayo were convicted of the murders in the Pietermaritzburg High Court and were sentenced for their crimes.
Acting Station Commander, Lt Col Madela praised Detective Sgt BG Mbatha for his sterling work in bringing the criminals to book.
READ ALSO:
Body of 87-year-old man found near railway
