Staff Reporter
The Free State High Court has handed a 25-year-old man from Brandfort an effective 20 years in jail after he was convicted of killing his girlfriend in May last year.
Judge Sylvia Daniso sentenced Lebohang Lucas Morake for the murder of Angelina Dora Lecwidi.
Morake and Lecwidi were drinking at a local tavern when they were involved in a verbal argument after he accused her of cheating.
National Prosecuting Authority regional spokesperson Phaladi Shuping said in a statement the accused grabbed Lecwidi by her clothes and pulled her outside.
“He then assaulted her by hitting her with fists, kicking her and hitting her head against a stone,” said Shuping.
“She died two days after being admitted to a hospital and the cause of death was recorded as head injury.”
“She was 14 weeks pregnant at the time of her death,” he added.
Morake, in his defence, told the court that he never intended to kill Lecwidi and her death was a mistake.
However, state prosecutor Advocate Tholoana Sekhonyana requested the court to reject the version of the accused because the doctor who conducted the post-mortem testified that the injuries sustained by the deceased could only be as a result of a heavy beating or a fall from a considerable height.
“The post-mortem revealed that the deceased suffered fatal injuries because she was severely assaulted and, therefore, the accused cannot tell the court that her death was a mistake as he was aware of his actions,” said Sekhonyana.
“The death of the deceased has affected her family as evidenced in the three victim impact statements that were written by the aunt, sister and the cousin of the deceased.”
Sekhonyana further said the accused failed to advance any compelling and substantial circumstances and therefore the court should impose a heavy sentence that will send a message that the courts are taking femicide cases seriously.