A 31-year-old Motlatsi Mpharu was sentenced to 25 years’ imprisonment on May 23 at the Sterkspruit Regional Court for attempted murder after he tied his then girlfriend, 22-year-old Mpho Kutoana, with an electric cable, stabbed her left thigh, and poured petrol over her and set her alight earlier this year, January 5.
Police spokesperson Captain Ursula Roelofse said during the assault, Mpharu also caught fire and had to extinguish the flames.
Roelofse revealed that before the assault, Mpharu accused Kutoana of being unfaithful.
As a result of the assault, Roelofse stated Kutoana sustained severe burn wounds and was admitted to Mpilisweni Hospital for two months.
Joe Gqabi District Commissioner, Major General Lindelwa Vellem, applauded the professionalism and attention to detail shown by Detective Sergeant Sibusiso Vundisa, and further commended the collaboration between the SAPS and the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), which led to this conviction.
