AN EXAMPLE has been made of former radio jock Donald “DJ Donald Duck” Sebolai, who was labelled a coward and an abuser.
This yesterday when Johannesburg High Court judge Cassim Moosa sentenced Sebolai to 20 years behind bars for murdering his girlfriend, Rachel “Dolly” Tshabalala.
Moosa said it was appropriate to give Sebolai a sentence higher than the prescribed minimum of 15 years for murder because domestic violence is endemic in South Africa.
Moosa said all crime has harsh repercussions for society but domestic violence is distinguished from other crimes because of its hidden and repetitive nature.
“ cuts across race and culture and is so pernicious because it is often hidden and goes frequently unpunished.”
Sebolai, 38, was convicted in October of murdering Tshabalala, 32. Tshabalala was stabbed in her pubic area when the couple had a fight at Sebolai’s Soweto flat in 2014. She bled to death.
He was also found guilty of attempting to defeat the ends of justice for tampering with the crime scene by mopping up Tshabalala’s blood on the floor, changing her clothes and removing the murder weapon from the crime scene.
He was sentenced to five years in prison for this crime, which will run concurrently with his murder sentence.
Moosa said Tshabalala suffered the most extreme consequence of intimate partner violence – death – and that the court had a duty not to take the national scourge of domestic violence lightly.
The judge said the evidence lead during Sebolai’s trial showed that he had the propensity for violence and fitted the profile of an abuser.
Sebolai admitted he had slapped Tshabalala and other girlfriends in the past “to keep them in line”, something he deemed acceptable.
Moosa came down harshly on Sebolai for failing to get Tshabalala medical attention after she had been wounded.
“The accused cold-bloodedly and callously killed the deceased and wanted her to die before his eyes.
“I find the entire conduct of the accused on the fatal day and the subsequent days preceding his arrest nothing short of aggravating.”
Instead of taking Tshabalala to a hospital that was 900m away, Sebolai let her bleed to death. He then went on the run for eight days before his arrest.
The voices of Tshabalala’s friends and family erupted in joyous song after proceedings wrapped up, while Sebolai’s friends and family quietly embraced him over the waist-high wall of the dock.
Tshabalala’s best friend, Nonhlanhla Mkhize, said that she was pleased with the sentence but Tshabalala’s mother, Elizabeth Marawa, said she had hoped for a life sentence.
Sebolai, who maintains his innocence, plans to appeal his conviction and sentence.
20 years in jail for former DJ- Judge comes down hard on Sebolai
This yesterday when Johannesburg High Court judge Cassim Moosa sentenced Sebolai to 20 years behind bars for murdering his girlfriend, Rachel “Dolly” Tshabalala.
Moosa said it was appropriate to give Sebolai a sentence higher than the prescribed minimum of 15 years for murder because domestic violence is endemic in South Africa.
Moosa said all crime has harsh repercussions for society but domestic violence is distinguished from other crimes because of its hidden and repetitive nature.
“ cuts across race and culture and is so pernicious because it is often hidden and goes frequently unpunished.”
Sebolai, 38, was convicted in October of murdering Tshabalala, 32. Tshabalala was stabbed in her pubic area when the couple had a fight at Sebolai’s Soweto flat in 2014. She bled to death.
He was also found guilty of attempting to defeat the ends of justice for tampering with the crime scene by mopping up Tshabalala’s blood on the floor, changing her clothes and removing the murder weapon from the crime scene.
He was sentenced to five years in prison for this crime, which will run concurrently with his murder sentence.
Moosa said Tshabalala suffered the most extreme consequence of intimate partner violence – death – and that the court had a duty not to take the national scourge of domestic violence lightly.
The judge said the evidence lead during Sebolai’s trial showed that he had the propensity for violence and fitted the profile of an abuser.
Sebolai admitted he had slapped Tshabalala and other girlfriends in the past “to keep them in line”, something he deemed acceptable.
Moosa came down harshly on Sebolai for failing to get Tshabalala medical attention after she had been wounded.
“The accused cold-bloodedly and callously killed the deceased and wanted her to die before his eyes.
“I find the entire conduct of the accused on the fatal day and the subsequent days preceding his arrest nothing short of aggravating.”
Instead of taking Tshabalala to a hospital that was 900m away, Sebolai let her bleed to death. He then went on the run for eight days before his arrest.
The voices of Tshabalala’s friends and family erupted in joyous song after proceedings wrapped up, while Sebolai’s friends and family quietly embraced him over the waist-high wall of the dock.
Tshabalala’s best friend, Nonhlanhla Mkhize, said that she was pleased with the sentence but Tshabalala’s mother, Elizabeth Marawa, said she had hoped for a life sentence.
Sebolai, who maintains his innocence, plans to appeal his conviction and sentence.
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