Man gets 16 years jail for bar killing
MBABANE – High Court Judge Jacobus Annandale has imposed a 16-year custodial sentence on a man who killed another in a bar brawl.
Sabelo Ndlangamandla was found guilty of culpable homicide in that he stabbed Majahodwa Moyane who later died on December 3, 2010.
He was drunk on the day and causing trouble in one of the bars in Nhlangano.
The court was told that he picked a fight with Moyane, but when confronted by a bouncer, he tried to run for the door.
However, the bouncer, tried to stop him, but he produced a knife. Moyane is said to have followed him outside, where he was stabbed.
Ndlangamandla had initially been charged with murder, but he pleaded guilty to culpable homicide, a lesser offence and the crown accepted his plea.
He was represented by lawyer Thabiso Fakudze in the matter.
When delivering his judgment on the sentence, Judge Annandale said Ndlangamandla survived by robbing other people, judging from his previous conviction of robbery and theft and the fact that he was unemployed yet he frequented drinking spots.
Annandale noted that Ndlangamandla never learnt any lesson from prison life and it showed that he had no respect for human life. He said he thought if Ndlangamandla had been properly sentenced in the previous cases for which he was detained, he would have learnt a lesson.
The judge said Ndlangamandla was not supposed to stab Moyane when he was followed outside.
"You cannot be left alone in society. You cannot behave yourself. The people of Swaziland can’t be expected to always duck and dive from people like you. The killing of another person cannot be addressed by imposing a sentence with an option of a fine, considering its seriousness," Annandale said.
He said Ndlangamandla was lucky that he escaped with a lesser offence.
He also said the country had passed the phase where people were sentenced to hard labour. He said the Correctional Institution empowered inmates with skills which they could use to survive after completing serving their sentences, therefore, he hoped Ndlangamandla would have learnt something too.
"When you come out, you would have to live a crime free life, otherwise you’d be sent back to prison. You would have to work to earn a living, not to rob others," Annandale said.
Judge Annandale suspended four years for three years on condition Ndlangamandla was not convicted of an offence where violence would be an element during the period of suspension.
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