Justice was administered on 24 January 2022, in the Gqeberha High court to a 38-year old murder accused who fatally shot an innocent law abiding citizen in Bethelsdorp in March 2019.
On Friday, 1 March 2019 at about 21:45, Billy Kleinhans (54), a community street patroller with the Bethelsdorp CPF and a friend were walking from Harlequin Street in Bethelsdorp and when they were at the corner of Barberry Street, they noticed three males standing against the wall of a shop.
As they were walking through an open field in Mistletoe Street, they heard gunshots. Kleinhans fell while his friend, aged 63 years old at the time, jumped over a boundary wall. Kleinhans sustained multiple injuries and died on the scene.
On Sunday, 3 March 2019 at 15:45, the Provincial Organised Crime Investigation Unit (Gang Investigation) arrested Marshall Chabide at a house in Gloxinia Street. Chabide was charged for Kleinhans’s murder and remained in custody until the finalisation of the case.
On 24 January 2022, almost three years later, Chabide was sentenced to life imprisonment for murder, 5 years for possession of a firearm and 1 year for possession of ammunition. The firearm related sentences will run concurrent with the murder sentence.
Acting Nelson Mandela Bay District Commissioner, Brig Thandiswa Kupiso welcomed the sentencing and iterated that justice was finally served. “The partnership fostered between community members working in some hotspot areas with the police is appreciated. Although these law abiding citizens are aware of the risks and dangers associated with their commitment, they remain loyal to the cause of protecting their neighbourhoods against crime and criminals. Kleinhans was a person of integrity and true grit. His deeds were a selfless act of patriotism which will be remembered by both the SAPS and the community he fought to protect,” added Brig Kupiso.
