A murder accused was sentenced to twenty years (20) years in prison for the merciless killing of another man in Theunissen. The accused Mr Thabo Van Rooyen was sentenced at Theunissen Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday, 22 May 2019.
The accused was convicted and sentenced for an incident that took place on Friday, 17 November 2017 at about 21:10. It was put before court that two adult males Mr Sechaba Sondela and Mr Molefi Molete were walking together in Lusaka Park public road when they were approached by an adult male referred to as the accused, Mr Thabo Van Rooyen. As he approached them, he stabbed Mr Molete with a sharp instrument in the face and both Mr Molete and Mr Sondela ran away in different directions.
The accused then ran after Mr Sondela and caught up with him and he started to stab him multiple times with a sharp instrument until Mr Sondela fell down. The suspect sat on top of him and stabbed him further until members of the community came to his rescue and pulled him away from Mr Sondela. Mr Sondela died soon afterwards and the accused was apprehended by Theunissen SAPS members.
Detective Sergeant Thabiso Molelengoane was also on the scene and he assisted to collect statements and exhibits. The case was assigned to Sgt Thabiso Molelengoane who carried out the investigation. He worked tirelessly using all the available resources at his disposal to solve this case. He presented a well prepared docket before the court. Mr Van Rooyen was subsequently found guilty of murder and attempted murder and was sentenced to twenty years direct imprisonment.
The Theunissen SAPS Station Commander, Lieutenant Colonel Montsheng Mohokare lauded Detective Sergeant Molelengoane for his sterling investigative skills to secure the conviction and sentence. “This success was secured through commitment shown by this member and will send a clear message to criminals that they have no space to operate in Theunissen,” concluded Lt Col Mohokare.
