The North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria has sentenced three farmers to life imprisonment for the premeditated murder of a farm resident in a case the court found to be racially motivated.
Jaco Wessels Kemp, 36, Louise Coetzee, 29, and Gert Frederik van der Westhuizen, 38, were convicted and sentenced for the killing of Dumisani Phakathi.
Gauteng regional spokesperson for the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), Lumka Mahanjana, said that in addition to the life sentences, the court declared the trio unfit to possess firearms and ordered them to surrender all firearms, ammunition, licences, authorisations and permits to the investigating officer.
Mahanjana said the court heard that on September 16, 2023, the three were socialising at a braai at a chicken farm in Mamokgalieskraal.
“At about 4pm, they noticed Phakathi walking past the farm gate on his way to collect water from a nearby furrow, a water source commonly used by members of the local community. According to evidence presented in court, the group approached Phakathi, assaulted him and dragged him into a storage facility on the farm. The assault continued until he succumbed to his injuries,” she said.
In the early hours of September 17, 2023, police conducting a stop-and-search operation on the R511 near Brits stopped a bakkie driven by Kemp and Coetzee. The vehicle was loaded with black refuse bags.
“During the search, officers noticed human legs protruding from beneath the bags. Upon closer inspection, they discovered the bloodied body of Phakathi, his head covered in plastic. Kemp and Coetzee were arrested at the scene,” said Mahanjana.
She added that following their arrest, van der Westhuizen handed himself over to police the next day.
“All three accused pleaded not guilty and attempted to shift blame onto one another during the trial. However, State Prosecutor Advocate Lawrence More presented evidence through witnesses that proved the State’s case beyond reasonable doubt.”
During sentencing, the defence asked the court to deviate from the prescribed minimum sentence, citing the time already spent in custody and their responsibilities as parents.
The prosecution opposed the request, arguing that the murder was senseless and carried out in a cruel and inhumane manner. The court heard that the men had placed the victim’s body in rubbish bags in an apparent attempt to dispose of it at a dumping site.
When handing down the sentence, the judge agreed with the State that the men showed no remorse and that the killing appeared to have no apparent motive.
Mahanjana said the court concluded that the only reasonable inference was that the murder was racially motivated.
sinenhlanhla.masilela@iol.co.za
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