25 years for murderer who dismembered girlfriend

Judge Nomathamsanqa Beshe last week sentenced Nosicelo Mtebeni’s killer Alutha Pasile to 25 years for murder and 10 years for attempting to defeat the ends of justice. The 10 years will run concurrently with the 25 years, reports HeraldLIVE. Both the defence and the state agreed that a lengthy sentence was proper for the crime committed. However, they disagreed on the length of the sentence, with defence lawyer Advocate Ncumisa Dyantyi proposing 20 years in jail while the state’s Nickie Turner pleaded for a life term. Earlier the court heard that two messages – ‘I love you’ and ‘I miss you’ – seen by Pasile on Mtebeni's cellphone, sparked a jealous rage, which led to her brutal murder, reports News24. The Eastern Cape High Court (East London), however, heard that the love messages, which made Pasile think she was cheating, had actually been old ones sent by him to Mtebeni. Social worker Nomonde Stamper made the revelation in a pre-sentence report. Stamper told the court Pasile was shocked to realise the truth – that he had killed her for something she did not do. EWN reports that the court was told Mtebeni was dismembered to conceal her identity. Pasile pleaded guilty to killing and dismembering his 23-year-old girlfriend in August. The social worker testified that Pasile admitted to removing Mtebeni's hands and head because he did not want her to be identified. A chief medical officer told the court heard that the skin on Mtebeni's hands and head appeared to be wrinkled, a sign that they had been immersed in a liquid over a long period. The social worker told the court Pasile had admitted he bought bleach to get rid of the odour of the severed body parts. He also bought a hacksaw and latex gloves at a hardware store.