Child murderer gets double life sentence
“YOU elected not to testify, and chose the cowardly way to remain silent.”
These were the words of Judge Gregory Kruger as he sentenced Zwelakhe Welcome Cele (36) to two life terms for the 2019 rape and murder of Lwazi Tembe (12).
The former school teacher was handed down an additional three years for kidnapping the boy after luring him from his home in Ingwavuma.
Kruger said he had not found compelling or substantial circumstances for him to deviate from the minimum prescribed sentences for rape and murder, which is life imprisonment.
Cele’s sentence was handed down on Thursday at Mtubatuba High Court following a guilty verdict on Wednesday.
Speaking after the conviction, Lwazi’s mother, Pretty Tembe, said, in light of the post-mortem report, she had more questions than answers and wished for a one-on-one with Cele so he could answer her many questions.
She said she suspects Cele was not acting alone and had opted to remain silent during trial because he was protecting people he had been in concert with when carrying out the crimes.
“Now that we have heard that my child's private parts were mutilated, and his leg amputated, I want to know where these were taken and for what purpose,” she said.
She further called for the reinstatement of the death penalty.
During sentencing on Thursday, Kruger said, while he acknowledged that it was
Cele’s constitutional right to remain silent during the trial, this decision was ‘cowardly’.
He said, for him to be convinced that Cele
could be rehabilitated, he needed to hear from the convict that he was sorry for what he did, and give reasons for his behaviour to ascertain if his claim of remorse was genuine.
Kruger said he agreed with the State prosecutor, Advocate Caleb Nhlakanipho Ngubane that Cele had murdered Lwazi because the child would have identified him for kidnapping and raping him because the convict was known to the boy.
The judge further questioned Cele why he had mutilated Lwazi's private parts and amputated his right leg at the knee.
"These questions are all unanswered because you refused to testify," said Kruger.
Kruger said he was sure Cele agreed with him that people who commit these crimes must go to jail for a very long time, failing which, communities may be compelled to take the law into their own hands, resulting in a state of anarchy, 'and I will not allow that'.
"You are a very, very dangerous person who needs to be kept away from children. You will have a long time in jail to reflect and it is up to you whether or not you reform," he said.
Cele was acquitted of six additional charges, for the kidnap, rape and murder of Sizwe Mlambo (12) in 2016 and Sfundo Clifford Nkwanyana (13) in 2018.
The crime
In a statement, Cele admitted to contacting Lwazi on 30 September 2019, asking that they meet at Cele’s home.
On 29 October 2019, the boy's body was dug up from a shallow grave, which Cele pointed out to the police after his arrest.
The boy's mouth was covered with sticky tape, and his neck and hands were bound with rope.
Shocking findings
According to the post-mortem report, Lwazi’s cause of death was strangulation.
His private parts had been mutilated, his anus was severely damaged and his right leg was amputated at the knee.
Cele denied raping and murdering Lwazi, and in a statement, alleged that when the minor arrived at his home, he had taken him to an abandoned building where he covered his mouth with tape, bound his limbs with rope and kept him in captivity so he could demand ransom money from the child's family. He believed this would alleviate his financial woes.
He further said that when Lwazi's parents
contacted him to ask about their child's whereabouts, he denied having seen the boy.
He said, the following day, he demanded via SMS a R5 000 ransom from Lwazi's family, and when this was not forthcoming, he decided to keep the child in captivity until payment was made.
Cele told the court he would check on Lwazi three times a day, give him food and water, and gave him a blanket.
He said, approximately three weeks later, he found that Lwazi was no longer alive.
He said he then removed Lwazi's clothes to determine if there were any injuries to his body and found none, saying he then took the body to an open field where he dug a shallow grave and buried him.