Five get time for killing cop

FIVE convicted criminals, including two women and a 15-year-old, have been sentenced for the murder and robbery of Malmesbury police officer Dion Duma.

Duma’s body was discovered after he went missing on Christmas Eve. He was lured into a bush by two sexworkers, Naydene Hill and Margaret van Wyk. It was during intimacy when three men, including a minor, robbed him.

The robbers, Thobingcebo Mditshane and Mateo Nero, dragged Duma to a decayed house nearby and tied his hands behind his back. The court heard that he was smothered with a black seat cover and strangled using shoe laces. Yesterday, Western Cape High Court Judge Mark Sher said the robbery escalated to murder when the robbers saw Duma’s police jersey in the car.

He described the murder as a “spine chilling cold blooded murder”. Handing down his sentence, Judge Sher gave the minor a threeyear sentence suspended for five years. He ordered that the 15-yearold be sent to a youth care centre for three years and he will then move to a place of safety to complete his sentence. “Speaking to you as a father; use this time to sort yourself out. You have potential,” he told the minor. Hill and Van Wyk were sentenced to 12 years for robbery with aggravating circumstances.

He said there were no compelling circumstances, but the apology of Van Wyk made him deviate from the minimum prescribed sentence of 15 years.

Mditshane, who pleaded guilty, was sentenced to 15 years for robbery and life imprisonment. While Nero got 15 years and 25 years imprisonment. The sentences are set to run concurrently. Provincial police spokesperson Noloyiso Rwexana said police management welcomed the lengthy sentences.