MBOMBELA – A 31-year-old woman was sentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment in the Balfour Regional Court on October 4, for the murder of her two-year-old niece.

The court heard how Brenda Radebe babysat the toddler for her sister, as the latter was working. On July 24, 2013, the child’s mother returned from work and found her daughter asleep, but  immediately noticed that something was wrong. She then asked her sister, the accused, if the child was sick. Radebe apparently told her that another child had hit the toddler with a rock.

The child’s mother took the baby to the local clinic from where she was transferred to Baragwanath Hospital in Gauteng. She died on July 25, 2013.

An inquest docket was opened by the police as post-mortem results revealed that the child had been severely assaulted. A charge of murder was brought against the accused, leading to her arrest on June 14, 2016.

The accused was out on bail until the court found her guilty of murder on Wednesday, October 4.
The Provincial Commissioner for Police, Lt Gen Mondli Zuma, said it was sad that such a young life had been lost due to abuse. “I hope the sentence will serve as a warning to child abusers that the police and the courts of this country will not hesitate to act against them,” Zuma concluded.

Submitted by: Col Mtsholi Bhembe
Editor: Anchen Coetzee
Subeditor: Lynette Brink
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