HUSBAND SENTENCED TO LIFE IMPRISONMENT FOR WIFE’S MURDER

HUSBAND SENTENCED TO LIFE IMPRISONMENT FOR WIFE’S MURDER

The High Court of South Africa: Western Cape Division has sentenced Babsy Ntamehlo, to life imprisonment and declared him unfit to possess a firearm after he killed his estranged wife, Nosicelo Tsipa, over a dispute over an RDP house. In a wide-ranging sentence judgment, the court also ordered the RDP house be forfeited to the couple’s minor child, Lilitha Tsipa. Judge Daniel Thulare ordered: “The patrimonial benefit of the marriage between the accused and the deceased in respect of the property referred to as 99 Street Fisantekraal, Durbanville, are forfeited to the by the accused in favour of the only child. Adv Zuka Mapopa, a practising Adv of the Cape Bar, is appointed curator ad litem for the child, Lilitha Tsipa, at State’s cost.”

Judge Thulare further ordered the mayor of Cape Town, George Hill, to establish, without undue delay, a trust for Lilitha’s benefit and assist in upholding his rights of freehold ownership of the house in a trust. He ordered the Premier of the Eastern Cape to ensure that the family of the deceased visit her grave as part of their therapy. “The Premier of the Province of the Eastern Cape shall within 30 days of this order, trace the remains of the deceased, Nosicelo Tsipa, buried within the boundaries of the Province of the Eastern Cape, and shall immediately take all the necessary steps to ensure that the minor child, Lilitha Tsipa, as well as the Nonkuthalo’s family, visit such a grave as part of their emotional and psycho-social therapy as advised by a social worker, Katlego Phiri.

“The Director General, National Department of Social Development is ordered to provide all the necessary resources, human and otherwise, to support Social Worker, Katlego Phiri, and all other necessary professionals in assisting the minor child, Lilitha Tsipa, in his emotional, psycho-social and other needs within their mandate as may be necessarily required.” Judge Thulare gave State, the curator ad litem, the Mayor of Cape Town, the Premier of the Province of the Eastern Cape, and the Director General, of the National Department of Social Development an opportunity to approach the court should a need arise to execute his order.

Ntamehlo was convicted on 27 October 2022, for the premeditated murder of an estranged wife who he threatened to strangle, kill, and burn her body in the early hours. He told his friend Nyameko Sixhozi: “Mtshawe, I wish to strangle death around the early hours of the morning and burn her body next to the river close to us, my brother. I have had enough.” A few days later, Tsipa’s body was found strangled, partially burnt, and buried in a shallow grave in Fisantekraal, near Durbanville.

During the trial, Senior State Advocate Megan September told the court that tensions increased between the couple after the accused made it clear that he no longer wanted the deceased as his wife and wanted to chase out of the property. The deceased had recordings, voice messages, and WhatsApp messages where the accused threatened to kill her. In one of the messages, he told her that most people go missing and do not get to be buried by their relatives. Fortunately, the deceased shared these messages with her brother and friends.

He physically abused his wife to the extent the deceased applied for two protection orders. Advocate September, told the court that the deceased applied for a protection order and that an interim protection order was granted on 3 September 2019, at Bellville Magistrates Court. This order was never made final as the accused did not appear, and the matter was removed from the roll. The deceased again applied for a second protection order at Bellville Magistrates Court and on 21 August 2020, an interim protection order was granted of which the return date for the hearing was November 2020.

He also moved out of their marital home to stay with a girlfriend at an informal settlement but visited his marital home and continued with the abuse of the deceased at times in front of their son. On 6 October 2020, the accused and the deceased were left alone in the house. She was never seen again. The accused told his son, her brother, his relatives, the police, and the community that she left, and he didn’t know where she was. He later changed the story and told his son and her brother that she had phoned asking for money but hung up before he could ask her whereabouts.

Her charred body in a shallow grave was discovered after Lukho and some community members followed a trek of a wheelie which was heard and seen pushed by the accused around the early hours of 7 October 2020. Her shallow grave was found next to the Mossel bank River, in Fisantekraal. When the news of the discovery of the shallow grave reached community members, they attempted to attack the accused. A police officer who was present had to shoot in the air and call for backup to keep the community members at bay.

The Director of Public Prosecutions in the Western Cape, Adv Nicolette Bell, applauded the prosecution and investigation in their sterling work which secured the successful conviction, the sentence, and the orders.