A Waterpoort farm labourer, Livhuwani Gilbert Mabada (33), was sentenced to five years' imprisonment in the Louis Trichardt Regional Court on a charge of culpable homicide on Tuesday.

The court imposed the sentence of five years on the accused and stated that he would only have to serve at least 10 months of his term before he could be released under correctional supervision. “If you are found on the wrong side of the law for any reason, you will have to go back to jail to do all the remaining time,” said the magistrate.

Mabada was initially on trial on a charge of murder and the charge was converted to culpable homicide when the court delivered judgement on Monday. The court heard that Mabada had stabbed a fellow farm worker, Maxwell Mathuthu, with a bottle on 2 April 2011, when both men were very drunk at the Jachtkraal farm in the Waterpoort area. The victim died in hospital a few days later.

In mitigation, the defence's attorney, Mr Donald Tshimbiluni, said that his client had acted under the influence of alcohol. “The court will note that when the accused was released on warning a couple of months ago, his previous employer gave him a job again,” said Tshimbiluni. “This indicates that he could lead a responsible life in the community.”

The court noted the fact that Mabada could rehabilitate after he had been in custody awaiting trial for two years, and was found not to have committed any offense in prison. “We also noted your attorney's argument that the crime was not premeditated,” said the court. “The court is surprised to see a person of your age behaving like a child.”

During trial, a medical doctor who had treated the deceased testified that Mathuthu had a stab wound on the left side of his chest, which suggested that a sharp object such as a knife was used, and not a bottle.

The accused is a resident of Madimbo village in the Niani area.