Unlucky 13 for murderer

The incident relating to the case took place at Dzwerani village in the Vuwani area during the night of September 24, last year, at about 22:00.

The court heard that, during the night of the incident, the deceased, Thivhulawi Mafela (19), was in the company of his girlfriend. They were standing next to the local Madala graveyard. The court further heard that, while the two were discussing issues relating to their love affair, the accused arrived.

The accused confronted the deceased and started accusing him of stealing his lover. The accused told the deceased that the girl who was in his (the deceased’s) company was his lover also. What followed thereafter was a heated argument between the accused and the deceased.

The argument took an ugly turn when the accused produced a knife and stabbed the deceased in the chest and back. He was taken to Tshilidzini Hospital where he died the following morning. The accused was arrested two days after the incident.

Before sentencing the accused, Judge Ally Lukoto described Madzimbalale as a dangerous element to the community. The accused was represented by Adv Mushasha while Adv NR Nekhambele prosecuted.

News - Date: 26 May 2006

Frank Mavhungu

Frank is a Human Resources Manager at the Department of Public Works in Limpopo. He is the longest serving correspondent of the Mirror, having joined us at the end of 1990.  He mainly writes sports reports and resides at Tsianda Village. In 2004, Frank won the National Castle League Award, an award for the best reporter in the SAB league in South Africa.

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