A man was sentenced to 22 years in prison by the Pietermaritzburg High Court for stabbing his mother to death.
|||Pietermaritzburg - A man was sentenced on Friday to 22 years in prison by the Pietermaritzburg High Court for stabbing his mother to death.
Thandaxolo Khumalo, from Maphumulo in Verulam in KwaZulu-Natal, admitted to killing his mother Thokozile Khumalo, 70, in July after coming home drunk.
He told the court on Wednesday he became angry when his mother scolded him for drinking and reneged on a promise to give him money.
Khumalo, 27, fetched a knife from the kitchen with which he stabbed her.
He then left his mother on the floor of her house, where she died, and fled when he realised what he had done. He tried to hide clues to his actions by burning his bloodied clothes.
According to the post mortem report she was stabbed in both lungs, her liver, face, and upper arm. She also had bruises on her face.
Khumalo's mother was a retired nurse who supported him and his child as Khumalo had never worked.
Convicted on Wednesday, Khumalo's defence said his guilty plea and the fact he was a first time offender were substantial and compelling circumstances justifying a 15-year sentence, the minimum for a first murder.
Acting judge Enthias Xolo, however, found that his acts deserved a more robust sentence.
He said the community demanded that violence against the elderly, women, and children be severely punished.
Sapa