Farm murderers laugh and smile at 40 year sentence

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DURBAN - The three men convicted of murdering an elderly woman pensioner at an oThongathi (Tongaat) farmhouse were sentenced to imprisonment of 40 years each on Thursday. While the youngest conveyed horror at his sentence as he walked back to the court's holding cells, the two other accused smiled and laughed in court.

Smangaliso Michael Mayela, 21, Nkosinathi Ngcobo, 20, and Odwa Zide, 21, were convicted and sentenced on a raft of charges by Magistrate Anand Maharaj on Thursday, after they pleaded guilty at the Durban Magistrates Court.

The charges included murder, attempted murder, robbery under aggravated circumstances and possession of an unlicensed firearm.





The attack on the Spioenkop farmhouse near oThongathi was described as “brutal and well-orchestrated”.









The body of Virathapusharam Govender, 70, was found gagged and left behind a bed in her room with a pillow over the body. Her 72-year-old husband, Steve Govender, managed to escape death by playing dead when the attackers returned to check on him.





Virathapushanam Govender, 70, was a well-known woman from oThongathi who was killed during a brutal attack at her farmhouse. Virathapushanam Govender, 70, was a well-known woman from oThongathi who was killed during a brutal attack at her farmhouse.





The trio were sentenced to 25 years for the murder charge, 10 years for each robbery charge, five years for the attempted murder charge and three years for the possession of an unlicensed firearm charge.





The sentences for the robbery charges will run concurrently, as will the sentences for the attempted murder and possession of an unlicensed firearm charge, bringing the total penance to 40 years, Maharaj said.





“Why would you want to do this to two elderly people who posed no threat to you? They could have easily been subdued or tied. I don’t believe they would have put up any resistance that warranted such violence,” Maharaj told the trio, and emphasized that the murder was senseless and unnecessary.





He also commended the police’s provincial organized task team for their swift action to make arrests.





Outside court, Govender's daughter, Yuvashnee, said her father was happy with the sentencing and hoped it would deter other criminal acts. Her father is still recovering, she said.



