MPUMALANGA. – Nkosingiphile Malinga and Samukelo Tshabalala have each been effectively sentenced to 20 years imprisonment for the murder of farmer Theo Bekker and the attempted murder of his wife, Marlinda, during a farm attack at Grootvlei in July 2023. Two other accused still have to stand trial on charges against them.
Col. Mavela Masondo, police spokesperson, said Malinga and Tshabalala entered into a plea and sentencing agreement with the state on 15 October 2026. The court accepted the agreement in terms of section 105A of the Criminal Procedure Act and sentenced the two on charges including murder, attempted murder, robbery with aggravating circumstances and violations of the law on elderly persons and the firearm control act.
The two were each sentenced to 25 years imprisonment for murder, of which five years was suspended on condition that they are not again found guilty of murder. They each also received 25 years for attempted murder, of which five years was suspended on condition that they are not again found guilty of attempted murder.
Further sentences include two years each on two charges in terms of the law on elderly persons, 15 years for robbery with aggravating circumstances and five years each on three charges in terms of the firearm control act. The court ordered that the sentences on charges two to eight be served concurrently with the murder sentence. Each will therefore effectively serve 20 years imprisonment.
The attack took place on 30 July 2023 at approximately 09:45. Police officials discovered the body of a man with stab wounds on the farm. His wife, who according to the statement was 65 years old, sustained serious head injuries and was taken for medical treatment. The attackers stole the couple's vehicle, firearms, ammunition and electrical appliances.
According to the SAPS' statement at the time, the four accused allegedly acted together and entered the couple's farm at Grootvlei. The attackers allegedly assaulted Bekker and demanded money and a firearm. His wife was according to the state suffocated with a plastic bag and assaulted several times. The attackers then fled with money, a firearm and the couple's vehicle.
The stolen vehicle was later found near Villiers in the Free State following an accident. The four suspects were arrested there. They were at the time identified as Siyabonga Ziqubu, Kgahliso Motaung, Samukelo Tshabalala and Nkosingiphile Malinga. The two younger accused were respectively 17 and 16 years old when they were arrested.
The FF Plus welcomed the police's swift action following the attack and said the four suspects were traced within hours. The party also urged swift legal proceedings and no bail for the accused. The cases against Ziqubu and Motaung have meanwhile been separated from those of Malinga and Tshabalala. According to the police, their trial is scheduled for 6 to 17 November 2028 in the High Court in Delmas.
Lt.Gen. Apaphia Modise, provincial commissioner in Mpumalanga, welcomed the sentences and praised the investigation team, prosecutors and the court for their role in ensuring justice for the victims. She said the sentences must send a clear message that people who attack farming communities and vulnerable elderly persons will face the full force of the law.
Photo: SAPD
This article is an automatic English translation of a Nuusflits article originally published in Afrikaans. Read the Afrikaans original.
