NELSPRUIT – The Provincial Commissioner of South African Police Service in Mpumalanga, Lieutenant General Mondli Zuma, has welcomed a life imprisonment term meted to 38 year old Lucas Tsietsi Nkoana. The sentence was handed down by the Mpumalanga Division of the High Court which was sitting in Delmas on Thursday, 13 August 2020.
The Court’s decision follows an incident where Nkoana was involved in the murder of 36 year old Jabulani Mazibuko on 18 February 2018. Mazibuko and his wife were attacked by four armed suspects as they entered their home in Kinross who fatally shot him, hijacked his car, kidnapped his wife and later dumped her at Ivory Park in Gauteng. She was rescued by passersby who then alerted police.
An investigation team by police with the assistance of Tracker company, led to the arrest of Nkoana. Nkoana was identified as the mastermind behind the whole incident and was further found in possession of the murder weapon loaded with ammunition. The police relentlessly persuaded the matter and also learned that immediately after the murder of Mazibuko, one of the suspects became embroiled in a shootout with police in Gauteng where he was fatally shot. The other two suspects are still at large. Nkoana was sentenced as follows:
– Count 1. murder life imprisonment.
– Count 2. robbery with firearm, fifteen years imprisonment.
– Count 3. kidnapping, seven years imprisonment.
– Count 4. possession of unlicensed firearm, five years imprisonment.
– Meanwhile on Count 5. possession of ammunition, he was sentenced to five years imprisonment,
The court has ordered that count 2, 3, 4, and 5, will run concurrently with count 1 for the purpose of sentence.
Lieutenant General Zuma has also commended the partnership between Tracker and the police which always bears positive feedback hence this life sentence. “We value stakeholder relations which can never be underestimated as it often yields desired results like in this case. We also believe that this sentence will serve as a deterrent to other criminals that crime does not pay, ” said General Zuma.
