Four Lesotho nationals who murdered a Bonnievale farmer were sentenced to life imprisonment in the Western Cape High Court on Thursday.
Ntabanyane John Tlali, Thabiso Nomoro Ramollo, Moeketsi Max Hlaudi, and Keketso Thabang Matsabisa were seasonal workers on Jurrie Wessel's, 55, Kapteindrift farm at the time of the murder in May of 2019.
They were found guilty of murder, attempted murder, robbery with aggravating circumstances, illegal possession of firearms, and the contravention of the Immigration Act 13 of 2002.
After the murder, three of the killers fled to Lesotho and had to be extradited to South Africa to stand trial.
NPA spokesperson for the Western Cape, Eric Ntabazalila said when the men entered the farm they were already familiar with the premises.
During the trial, the court heard gruesome details of how the deceased and his wife, Liezel, 55, were tortured during the night of the attack.
They were stabbed, and they had boiling water poured over their bodies.
Advocate Megan Blows told the court they attempted to cut off Liezel's fingers with a grinder, and when the couple prayed, cried, or spoke to each other, they punched in the mouth.
According to Blows, the accused extended their anguish by dragging the deceased along vines before eventually shooting him in the face.
The complainants were robbed of a cell phone, a .22 Rifle, a .38 Special Revolver, ammunition, and R115 000 in cash.
Arguing in aggravation of sentence, Blows said the murderers wasted the South African taxpayers’ money engaging in a lengthy extradition inquiry in Lesotho.
Blows also said they did not show any remorse and were dishonest to the end.
The court heard evidence of how the farm killing shook the Bonnievale community.
Judge Derek Wille said farm murders were prevalent, and the interests of the public must be adequately served in sentencing the offenders.
He further said gender-based violence in SA has regrettably reached pandemic proportions.
The Director of Public Prosecutions, Western Cape, Adv Nicolette Bell, welcomed the sentence and praised the investigation and prosecution team for their collaboration that led to an arrest, extradition, and successful prosecution.
