Court hears how tragedy unfolded at family home

The Madadeni Regional Court has sentenced a 22-year-old woman to life imprisonment after she pleaded guilty to the murder of her one-year-old infant in Osizweni in October last year.

According to National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) regional spokesperson for the KwaZulu-Natal Division, Natasha Ramkisson-Kara, the incident occurred on October 12 while the infant was at home with both parents.

“At some point, the father left the mother (the accused) alone with the child while they were playing together. When the father later returned, he found the accused cuddling the infant but noticed that the child was not moving,” explained Ramkisson-Kara.

She said the infant remained motionless even when the accused changed the child’s nappy.

When the accused indicated that she wanted to leave with the infant, the father insisted that she wake the child before leaving.

The infant remained unresponsive, prompting the father to realise that the child might be deceased.

“He ran to fetch a neighbour, who confirmed that the infant had indeed passed away,” Ramkisson-Kara said.

Emergency services and police were called to the scene, where paramedics declared the infant dead.

Post-mortem reveals cause of death

The accused was arrested and taken into police custody, where she was charged with murder.

“A post-mortem examination later revealed the cause of death to be asphyxiation,” Ramkisson-Kara added.

In court, the accused admitted to committing the crime after an argument with the infant’s father.

In aggravation of sentence, the state argued that the accused had other options available instead of resorting to violence, including seeking assistance from social services or considering adoption.

The infant’s father testified for the state, telling the court he remains traumatised by the incident and has since lost trust in women.

In addition to the life sentence, the accused was declared unfit to possess a firearm.

The matter was prosecuted by state prosecutors Marion Willis-Smith and Khethiwe Kunene.

The National Prosecuting Authority reaffirmed its commitment to upholding the rule of law and pursuing justice without fear, favour or prejudice.

“The NPA will continue to safeguard the rights and dignity of all members of society, particularly children and other vulnerable groups. Parents have a fundamental responsibility to protect their children,” Ramkisson-Kara concluded.

(The suspect has not been named as the case involves a minor.)

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