The killers of an Ashburton building contractor robbed society of a valuable member, Judge Rishi Seegobin said.
|||Durban - The killers of an Ashburton building contractor robbed society of a valuable member who had helped with a community outreach programme.
Society expected the courts to dispense justice and that those who committed wanton acts of violence would not go unpunished, Judge Rishi Seegobin said in the Pietermaritzburg High Court on Thursday in sentencing the three killers of Bob Hudson-Bennett.
Judge Seegobin sentenced Mzwakhe Mdlalose, Sandile Mncwabe and Sphamandla Mkhize to life and a further 15 years each for the murder of 61-year-old Hudson-Bennett, who was stabbed in his home.
All three are from Imbali. They were 19, 21 and 22 at the time of the murder and pleaded not guilty.
Hudson-Bennett was awakened by intruders on February 5, 2011.
He got up to investigate and was stabbed to death.
Bloodstains were found in the lounge and the passage leading from the bedroom.
Judge Seegobin said the trio’s brazenness, brutality and callousness indicated they had no regard for the sanctity of human life.
He referred to the testimony of Hudson-Bennett’s wife, Cheryl, who gave evidence in aggravation of sentence this week.
She testified that she and Hudson-Bennett had been married for 36 years and described her husband as a “family man”.
At the time of his death, Hudson-Bennett was involved in a community outreach programme in Cato Ridge that taught building skills to people improve their lives.
“His death resulted in the project being scrapped. It is clear that he was a contributing and valuable member of society who was committed to uplifting the community. Society is all the poorer for this loss,” Judge Seegobin said.
Cheryl also testified that her family had suffered great emotional and financial trauma as a result of her husband’s murder.
Her daughter’s engagement to her English-born fiancée broke down because her daughter could not return to England, choosing to stay with her mother in South Africa.
Also, the couple had adopted the young son of their domestic worker, who died in 2010. The boy, Sandile, who is now 13, discovered Hudson-Bennett’s body and was so traumatised that he had to undergo counselling.
“It is clear that the emotional and traumatic effects on the family have been devastating,” the judge said, adding that he had no doubt that the void created by Hudson-Bennett’s death would never be filled.
Judge Seegobin said none of the accused had shown an iota of remorse for what they had done.
“Sadly, the brutality displayed in this case is becoming a common reality for many in this country.”
Judge Seegobin commended the investigating team for their sterling efforts in bringing the criminals to justice.
“It is especially satisfying to note that there are still policemen in this country who take their jobs seriously,” he said.
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