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Thupeyo Muleya Beitbridge Bureau
A 39-year-old Motswana man has been jailed for an effective 12 years in South Africa for killing his Zimbabwean girlfriend whom he accused of terminating pregnancy without his consent.

Joseph Mafifi of Moletemane area in Botswana is accused of committing the murder in Lephalale area in Limpopo Province last year.

Limpopo police spokesperson Colonel Moatshe Ngoepe said the man was convicted on one count of murder when he appeared at the Polokwane High Court on Monday morning.

He identified the Zimbabwean woman as Simangele Sibanda, who died due to multiple stab wounds at the hands of Mafifi.

“On the 18th March 2018 at about 2am, police at Tom Burke outside Lephalale, received a report of a woman who was being stabbed at one of the local farms in Swart Water,” said Col Ngoepe.

“They then rushed to the area, where upon arrival they found the lifeless body of a 44-year-old woman with multiple stab wounds throughout the body. The deceased was identified as Simangele Sibanda from Zimbabwe.”

Col Ngoepe said soon after committing the crime, Mafifi left Sibanda’s lifeless body lying in a pool of blood and fled to his native country.

He said Mafifi was then tracked to Botswana by police detectives where he was arrested and extradited to face trial for murder in South Africa.

Col Ngoepe said Mafifi revealed during trial that he killed Sibanda for aborting the pregnancy of their baby without his consent.