A KZN husband who shot his wife twice in the face and then called an ambulance has been handed a suspended sentence.
|||A Road Traffic Inspectorate (RTI) officer who shot his wife twice in the face and then called an ambulance to attend to her has escaped a jail term on Tuesday.
Pietermaritzburg High Court Judge Isaac Madondo sentenced him to 10 years, wholly suspended for five years, for attempted murder.
Judge Madondo ordered that Lebohang Molefe complete three years of correctional supervision and continue with psychotherapy until a medical practitioner discharged him from further attendance.
Molefe was also ordered to pay his former wife, Londeka, who suffered significant emotional and physical trauma, R60 000 towards counselling and future medical expenses. This amount is to be paid in monthly instalments of R1 000.
Molefe has also been declared unfit to carry a firearm.
The court heard that Molefe had been transferred from the Pinetown RTI to offices in Newcastle to minimise any contact with Londeka. He has also been moved to the administration section.
Londeka was shot in the face twice on the afternoon of April 29, 2010, by her then-husband. The couple have since divorced.
Molefe pleaded guilty to the attempted murder of his wife. In his plea, he told the court that he and Londeka had married in April 2005, but from the outset the union had not been happy.
He told the court that they argued constantly over accusations of his infidelity.
Molefe said that on the day of the shooting, he had been upset and emotional after a massive argument regarding the couple’s butchery business.
Before he knew it, his service pistol was in his hand and he had fired twice, hitting Londeka in the face.
Her injuries affected her breathing and her mandible was broken, and her jaw had to be wired.
She had to undergo surgery to have a plate inserted into her face owing to the bones being fractured. Londeka told the court that she still suffered post-nasal drips and constant headaches as a result of her injuries.
Her jaw had also not completely healed, so she could not chew on the left side of her mouth and could not fully open her mouth.
In mitigation of sentence, Molefe told the court that he was very remorseful for his actions and offered to compensate Londeka for her injuries.
He said that he was in therapy addressing his anger management issues and did not see himself committing an act of this nature again.
Molefe said that the incident had traumatised him emotionally because he knew he had caused Londeka harm and negatively affected their children.
In sentencing, Judge Madondo said that by not sentencing Molefe to jail time, he was by no means condoning the evil deed he committed by shooting the mother of his two children.
“I believe that a custodial sentence would serve only a retributive purpose in this circumstance. With a suspended sentence, coupled with stringent conditions, I believe this will provide long-lasting protection to the victim and her children. In my view, this will have far-reaching consequences in benefiting the family,” Judge Madondo said.
The judge said he believed that Molefe, who was a first offender, had taken steps to turn over a new leaf and was a man who was truly remorseful for his deeds.
The judge said it was clear that the couple had suffered through an unhappy and stormy marriage, and that it was an accumulation of events that had caused Molefe to snap.
Molefe’s mother, Thembalini, told the Daily News that she was very happy with the sentence.
“I think it was fair. My son did a horrible thing and he will live with this burden on his shoulders for the rest of his life. I will personally see to it that he adheres to the conditions of his sentence,” she said.
Londeka was not available for comment. - Daily News