Man found guilty of actor’s murder sentenced to life plus 23 years in prison
“It is not easy for a father to bury his own son especially when he did not die of natural causes, but was killed unnecessarily because of greed.”
The 37-year-old man who murdered actor of an internationally acclaimed movie in March 2019 has been sentenced to one life term and 23 years of direct imprisonment last Friday.
The Tanzanian national Julies Lucas was arrested in 2019 for the murder of Sibusiso Phuti Khwinana, who starred in the film Matwetwe.
Khwinana’s family said they were still struggling to cope with the loss of their son.
At the time of the murder, Khwinana and two of his friends had gone to Sterland Mall in Arcadia to watch the premiere of the Matwetwe movie in which Khwinana was the lead actor.
NPA regional spokesperson Lumka Mahanjana said after watching the movie while waiting for the e-hailing taxi service outside the mall and taking pictures, Lucas forcefully grabbed Khwinana’s cellphone and ran away.
Mahanjana said Khwinana ran after him and, after catching up, a struggle for the phone ensued.
“During the struggle, Lucas stabbed Khwinana in his chest with a sharp object and fled the scene.”
Khwinana was found on the floor bleeding by his friends.
They called for medical assistance, but Khwinana was declared dead upon the arrival of the medics.
“According to the post-mortem report, Khwinana died as a result of a stab wound through the heart,” she said.
The NPA welcomed the sentence handed down by Pretoria high court Judge Portia Phahlane.
Phahlane, delivering her judgment, said that “Lucas had robbed the entertainment industry and South Africa as a whole, of a great talent”.
She said Lucas had shown no remorse and had no respect and understanding of the importance of taking an oath because he lied several times during his testimony.
Phahlane, during sentencing, ordered that Lucas should also be deported back to his country of origin and that the copy of the judgment should be made available to the National Director of Public Prosecutions, the Minister of Justice and Correctional Services and the Minister of Home Affairs.
The order for deportation comes as Phahlane had also convicted Lucas of murder, robbery with aggravating circumstances and being illegal in the country and using fraudulent documents on February 3, 2022.
Lucas was also declared unfit to possess a firearm.
He had been in custody since his arrest on March 8 in 2019, where during the trial he had pleaded not guilty to all the charges.
Mahanjana said when sentence proceedings began on March 28, Lucas tried to delay the process by firing his attorney.
She said Lucas requested to appoint a new legal representative and wanted to appeal his conviction.
“The matter was set down to May 3, to establish if Legal Aid South Africa can provide him with another legal representative. However, on the said date he changed his mind and proceeded with the same attorney.”
In a statement, Khwinana’s father said his family was not coping with the loss of their son, both emotionally and physically.
The father said he was struggling with sleep and that his and his wife’s health had deteriorated since the passing of their son.
“It is not easy for a father to bury his son especially when he did not die of natural causes, but was killed unnecessarily because of greed,” the statement read.
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