Court doesn’t buy Mdluli’s old, sick story
Johannesburg – Former crime intelligence boss Richard Mdluli and his former colleague Mthembeni Mthunzi have each been sentenced to an effective five-years in jail.
Judge Ratha Mokgoatlheng ruled at the South Gauteng High Court on Tuesday the pair deserved a custodial sentence. This was contrary to their impassioned submissions they were too old and sickly for jail.
"The only appropriate sentence is a custodial sentence," the judge said.
The pair were found guilty in July 2019 of two counts of kidnapping, two counts of common assault and two counts of assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm.
The charges related to the kidnapping and assault of the late Oupa Ramogibe, and one Alice Manana in 1998.
Ramogibe was traced after eloping with and secretly entering into a civil marriage with Mdluli’s customary law wife, the late Tshidi Buthelezi.
Manana was kidnapped from her home and forced to point out where Ramogibe and Buthelezi hid. She took them to a house in Orange Farm.
Judge Mokgoatlheng sentenced the pair to three years each for kidnapping, two years for grievous bodily harm and a year each for common assault.
He ruled the kidnapping and common assault charges should run concurrently. The two for grievous bodily harm should run separately.
"Effectively, you are sentenced to five years in prison," said Judge Mokgoatlheng.
He also said the pair abused their power as police officers "in an extremely shocking manner".
“In my view, the offences which the accused committed were very serious."
Ramogibe was killed in 1999 and no one was brought to book for his murder.
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