'I will never kill for a mere R575k'

'Dead man' remorseful wife's ex-lover is dead

A man on trial for  the murder of his wife's ex-boyfriend, who was burnt to death in the couple's marital home, says it is disappointing that people think he would kill a person for only R575,000.

According to the prosecutor, Sibusiso Mahlangu and his wife Lerato conspired to kill Sibusiso Sithebe so that they could benefit financially. This was because Lerato had identified the charred body of Sithebe as that of her husband and then cashed out R575,000 from an insurance policy.

Allegations are that after Sithebe died, Mahlangu faked his own death, leaving Soshanguve, north of Pretoria, and living somewhere else.

Mahlangu responded: “It's quite disappointing that people think I would kill a person for R575,000, that is not a lot of money. I didn't kill a person, moreover, [I did'nt] fake my death.” 

He said he feels remorseful for the Sithebe family over what happened, although he does not know what happened to their child.

When asked why he is remorseful he said: “Because they lost their son.”

The state alleges that Lerato called Sithebe to the Soshanguve home she shared with Mahlangu on New Year's Day in 2022. And while Sithebe was there, she and her husband murdered him.

Afterwards, the couple allegedly burnt Sithebe's body and then Lerato passed it off as belonging to Mahlangu, her husband, and claimed more than half-a-million rand in insurance payout.

The couple was arrested in April last year after Mahlangu was caught driving a suspected stolen car. It was when he was booked into custody that he allegedly told the police officers that he was registered as a dead person.

The car that Mahlangu was bust driving belonged to his girlfriend from Mpumalanga.

It was revealed in court that on the day of Sithebe's murder, Mahlangu fled Sohanguve, went to Silverton (Pretoria) then later to Mpumalanga. There he met a woman who sold lingerie and perfumes and then began a relationship with her.

The woman introduced her friend to Mahlangu, who started a relationship with her too without the knowledge of the main girlfriend.

One day the three of them were supposed to go to Bela Bela to sell their products, but the main girlfriend fell ill. Mahlangu then took her car and went with the other girlfriend to Bela Bela. While on the way there, Mahlangu decided to go to Hammanskraal. Once there, they decided to live there and rented a place.

“It's quite disappointing that people think I would kill a person for R575,000, that is not a lot of money. I didn't kill a person, moreover, [I did'nt] fake my death.” Sibusiso Mahlangu

Back in Mpumalanga, the main girlfriend opened a theft case against Mahlangu as he had failed to return her car. Mahlangu was arrested on April 17 2023 for possession of a suspected stolen vehicle.

It was when he was booked into custody that he allegedly told police officers that he was registered as a dead person, and then allegedly confessed to Sithebe’s murder.

Lerato was also arrested and the couple faces charges of murder and fraud.

During cross-examination yesterday, Mahlangu kept disturbing the prosecutor, Vusimuzi Tshabalala, by not letting him finish his sentences, leading to judge Mokhine Mosopa reprimanding him.

“In the end, I will have to weigh the evidence before me together with the demeanour, so please stop and answer when you are asked,” Mosopa said.

Mahlangu said he did not even contact his children to check up on them while in hiding because he wanted "to find himself" following the discovery that his wife was cheating on him.

He revealed in court that he found out on New Year's Day that Lerato was cheating on him with Sithebe.

Asked by Mosopa whether he did not care about his children hence he did not contact them, Mahlangu said he was just “not in the right space at the time”.

“I was not okay, I was depressed. I had lost my uncle, had just discovered that my wife cheated on me and the only mistake I did was to walk away from my family. I was not okay... I just wanted to find myself,” Mahlangu said.

He also said that in the two weeks that he spent in Hammanskraal before his arrest, it never occurred to him to go and check on his mother.

The trial continues on Thursday.

moloih@sowetan.co.za

SowetanLIVE