Court Sentences Man To 20 Years Imprisonment For Killing Wife's Lover

A Durban high court judge, Kate Pillay sentenced 44-year-old Phumlani Sangweni to 20 years imprisonment on Thursday 23, 2023, for killing John Bhengu, his wife's secret lover.

Bhengu died from his injuries in Stanger Hospital.

“He had been purposeful and deliberate. Crimes of this nature are endemic in the country. 

"This is despite there being avenues to resolve disputes,” said Pillay.

Cellphone records and conversations linked Sangweni to the scene in Glendale Heights, on the outskirts of KwaDukuza.

Pillay discovered exceptional circumstances that allowed her to deviate from the mandatory minimum sentence of life imprisonment.

She claimed Sangweni had shown no remorse in his plea of not guilty. He also did not testify during the mitigation of sentence arguments.

“The court could glean a glimpse of the pain that the infidelity had brought to him. Common sense detects the pain of betrayal and frustration must have driven the accused on the course that he did,” said Pillay.

This, she felt, did not diminish the gravity of his actions.

"The court cannot ignore the frailty of emotions," she added.

According to Pillay, the court recognized that both families had suffered as a result.