Khasho August September 2010 - National Prosecuting Authority

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12 NPA PerformanceGranny killer sentenced to lifeA 22 year-old man who raped and murdered a 72 year-oldwoman in Kimberley was sentenced to life imprisonment inthe Northern Cape High Court. Andries Mohale who isaccused of rape and murder of Hettie Uys was found guilty inthe Northern Cape High Court and sentenced to lifeimprisonment. He also received an additional 25 yearsentence.Acting Judge BM Pakati sentenced Mohale from Donkerhoekin Galeshewe to life imprisonment for murder, 10 years forrape and 15 years for robbery with aggravating circumstances.The sentences will run concurrently. Uys was brutallymurdered in the West End cemetery in January last yearduring a regular visit to her husband’s grave. She had astanding engagement of placing fresh flowers on herhusband’s grave every Sunday morning after church.State AdvocateAdele Van Heerdensaid Uys wasseverely assaultedand was struck onthe head with astone and someforce must havebeen used whichwas the intention ofher attacker to killAdvocate Adele Van Heerden her. MonnapuleWindvogel whowas accused number two, turned state witness at the beginningof the trial. The third accused, a 16 year-old minor wasacquitted. Acting Judge Pakati described the attack on Uys as“vicious and appalling”. She said the accused is a danger tosociety who does not have respect for anybody’s dignity andprivacy. “The court also takes into consideration that he didnot show any remorse”, she said.The Acting Judge said the accused was a poor witness whogave long-winded explanation to answer the questions of theprosecution. She also stated that the accused had no right tosteal the old woman’s possessions after he stole her denturesand took money from her wallet. “He severely assaulted theelderly woman and dragged her to her car where she wasraped”, she said.Phaladi Shuping“The evidence as a whole is beyond reasonable doubt. Aconsiderable amount of force must have been used to hit thedeceased. The bruising on her face also shows that the accusedused a significant amount of force. She was 72 anddefenseless”, the Judge said.After the accused was given a life sentence, the deceased’seldest daughter, Annamarie Potgieter stood in front of him fora few seconds, staring into his evading eyes. “I just wanted tolook into the eyes of the man who murdered my mother. Ispoke to him in silence. He knew what I was saying”, she saidto Khasho.Commentary by Advocate AdeleVan HeerdenWe experienced a lot of challenges during the trial. Firstly,there was no eyewitness to testify. There was also no DNAthat could be found on the dentures since an abrasiveliquid was used to clean them. We could also not find thedentist that could link the specific dentures to thedeceased. The investigating officer found the shoe printsnext to the body of the deceased but due to the composureof the surface no extractible prints for comparisonpurposes could be made.The accused alleged that he was at the cemetery where hefound the deceased who had already been attacked. Hewas under the impression that she was dead, and lookedthrough her vehicle for something to steal. He claimed thathe may have stepped on the deceased when he exited thevehicle. This was given in an effort to explain the palmprint and the sole print on the face of the deceased.The highlight of the case was seeing the pieces of evidencecoming together. The investigating officer managed totrace the dentures of the deceased to the accused. It wasalso gratifying to see the family members of the deceasedwelcoming the sentence.I have learned from this case that it invaluable to workclosely with the investigating officer from the start. Theinvestigating officer was inexperienced since this was hisfirst big case but by working closely together, we managedto get conviction on the murder with dolus directus.Professionalism, Integrity, Service Excellence, Accountability and Credibility
NPA Events 13Sexual Offences Indaba 2010Sibongile MogaleThe third Sexual Offences Indaba was held in Kempton Park, Johannesburg, from 16 to 17 August 2010.Dr Silas Ramaite, the Deputy National Director of PublicProsecutions welcomed and thanked everybody on behalf ofthe NDPP, including the Director of USAID and other donors’representatives.Dr Ramaite said there was a need to continue holding suchindabas even though there was a feeling among certain NPApeople that much has been done. The reality is, said DrRamaite, there was still a lot ofwork to be done. Women andchildren are still being raped intheir homes, where they areactually supposed to feel safe.“Their rights are being violated,and it is our duty to restore thoseviolated rights to the best of ourabilities”, he said.Advocate Thoko Majokweni,head of the SOCA Unit, said:“Success in our country willonly be achieved when there isjustice in our society so thatpeople can leave in freedom andsecurity - and those peopleinclude women and children”.Adv Majokweni explained that the indaba was the third one tobe held, and the feedback received from all previous indabasshowed that there was indeed a need for such an event.She explained that the purpose of the first indaba was to bringeveryone together to share their experiences; the second onewas aimed at exploring how ordinary South African citizenscould have access to the various support services offered, andthis year’s indaba was aimed at consolidating the dreams ofthe past two years. Expanding further, Adv Majokweni saidthe third indaba was also aimed at achieving the following:• To strengthen stakeholder cooperation;• To mainstream Human Trafficking management inGender Based Violence programmes;• To review stakeholder collaboration mechanisms; andDelegates at the Sexual Offences Indaba 2010• To develop an integrated capacity developmentprogramme for law enforcement agencies, criminal justiceagents, health and social welfare professionals.In closing, Adv Majokweni said: “We are here to plantogether, to ensure that we achieve together. We are here toprovide leadership in our different areas and colleagues so thatthose colleagues know why we are here”.Mr Jeff Borns, the MissionDirector of USAID promisedthat his organisation wouldcontinue offering its support toSouth Africa, and praised AdvMajokweni for her passion anddrive in ensuring the successof the partnership betweenSouth Africa and USAID.“The partnership we arehaving with South Africa ismarvellous and will continueto be like that for a very, verylong time,” he said.Speaking on the model ofThuthuzela Care Centres(TCCs), Mrs Mmabatho Ramagoshi, who was also thefacilitator for the day, said she was very proud of the supportthat the Danish government had given in the establishment ofTCCs. She said the model was behind the successfulestablishment of TCCs that South Africa has witnessed. MrsRamagoshi urged the Danish government to continue offeringits support, including all future initiatives.In conclusion, she said: “Gender Based Violence (GBV) inSouth Africa is still a challenge. People choose different waysto look at the problem. Studies are very difficult to provide afull picture of what is really happening in our country and thesame applies to Human Trafficking. Although studies havebeen conducted, we still don’t have an accurate picture. So farwe rely only on evidence”.Professionalism, Integrity, Service Excellence, Accountability and Credibility
Page 1 and 2: Professionalism, Integrity, Service
Page 3 and 4: NDPP Message 3Message from theNatio
Page 5 and 6: NPA Performance 5From all the women
Page 7 and 8: NPA Performance 7Chauvinist gets li
Page 9 and 10: Staff Events 9Women prosecutors fig
Page 11: NPA News 11Asset Recovery Inter Age
Page 15 and 16: NPA Staff 15Professional Journey of
Page 17 and 18: NPA News 17Update on Operation Recr

Khasho August September 2010 - National Prosecuting Authority

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