On Friday, 17 November 2017, the Ladysmith Regional Court convicted and sentenced Jabulani Mtshali (48) to three life imprisonment terms for two counts of rape and murder.
On 3 October 2015 at 13:30 the victim, Nomusa Zwane (65) was at Madiba Drive when she was approached by the accused. She was lured into a nearby bushes under the pretext that the accused had roof sheeting for sale.
While in the bushes, she was raped and strangled by the accused. She was also severely assaulted with a hammer and she died of her injuries.
A case of rape and murder was opened at Ladysmith police station for further investigation and local Ladysmith Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences unit took over the investigation that led to the arrest of the accused.
During the investigation, it appeared that the accused was also linked to another rape case where a 10 year old victim was raped in November 2014.
The KwaZulu-Natal Acting Provincial Commissioner, Major General Bheki Langa praised the unit for their well prepared docket that was presented at court. “I welcomed the sentence handed down to the accused and this will serve as a warning to other would-be criminals who are thinking of committing such crimes. I also thanked all witnesses and Prosecuting Authority for making sure that the accused in locked for life in prison,” he said.
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