A Northern Cape man was sentenced to 20 years’ imprisonment for beating his wife to death while he was out on bail for a separate murder charge.
A 38-YEAR-old Northern Cape man was sentenced to 20 years’ imprisonment for beating his wife to death while he was out on bail for a separate murder charge.
Lawrence Coetzee was sentenced by the Prieska Regional Court on Friday, January 28 for the brutal murder of Jesmien Swarts.
Swarts died after she was severely assaulted by Coetzee for several hours on the weekend of November 4, 2017, after she apparently got home late on a Friday night.
The court heard that Swarts was assaulted from Friday night until the early hours of Saturday after Coetzee was angry with her for not cooking for him.
The assault continued on Saturday.
Witnesses said they heard Swarts’ cries but were afraid to intervene as the couple had a violent and turbulent relationship.
Swarts’ naked and severely assaulted body was found inside the house she shared with Coetzee after he told his mother that she had died.
Coetzee blamed the death on Swarts’ cousins, who had apparently escorted her home after her night out.
The court heard that the walls of the house were spattered with Swarts’ blood.
Testimony from friends of Swarts stated that Coetzee had instructed them to rape her when they tried to stop the assault after hearing her cries.
Magistrate Nqadala, who handed down the sentence on Friday, said that Coetzee had infringed on Swarts’ dignity after he left her lying naked on the floor after the assault.
“The accused embarrassed the deceased and infringed on her dignity when the deceased was lying naked on the floor and he instructed his friends to rape her. There is a history of domestic violence between the couple. Communities, however, are urged to be vigilant and to overcome the fear of not wanting to interfere in others’ ‘business’ …They have to act and take action,” said Nqadala.
He added that Coetzee had acted in a “selfish” manner and had assaulted Swarts because she did not tend to his needs.
“The deceased was killed for exercising and enjoying her freedom of movement. The accused was angry at the fact that the deceased went out to join friends and enjoyed some drinks. The deceased was killed because the accused was hungry and she did not cook for him. Nothing was stopping the accused from cooking for himself while the deceased was out. The accused was in good enough health to conduct that duty himself, yet he placed his anger for his hunger solely on the deceased. This sentence needs to send a message to men that gone are the days that women are the slaves of men. If a man is hungry, he can cook for himself.”
The State prosecutor in the matter, advocate Thabo Sekhesa, said the State welcomed the sentence.
Sekhesa said that domestic violence is a serious “cancer” that needs to be rooted out.
“The accused blamed the family members of the deceased for her death. He at first said that the deceased was assaulted while she was out. We heard the evidence from a blood-spatter analyst, whose testimony contradicted the testimony from the accused as there was no blood found in the street. The only blood was inside the hose. The walls, cupboards and floors inside the house had blood on them. The accused was also the only person inside the house with the deceased. It was a very gruesome act,” said Sekhesa.
He added that the fact that Coetzee was out on bail for a separate murder case was even more aggravating.
“In the first incident, the accused was charged for stabbing someone to death in July 2016. He killed Swarts while he was on bail for the stabbing case. He was sentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment in 2018 while he was in custody for the murder of Swarts. The accused had no regard for the lives he took, nor did he have any for the law. He had no fear in continuing his violent acts and this sentence will send the message that the law will deal harshly with those who have no regard for human life,” Sekhesa said.
