Africa-Press – South-Africa. Pretoria – Emotions ran high in the Polokwane High Court today as Precious Ramabulana’s aunt, Mavis Sethodimela, who was state witness broke down in tears while she was on the stand.
She was testifying during mitigation factors by the defence after 29-year-old Aubrey Manaka, yesterday, pleaded guilty for the murder and rape of Ramabulana, 21.
Manaka is facing four counts including the rape, murder and robbery of the Capricorn TVET college student at Ga-Ramokgopa in Botlokwa, outside Polokwane in Limpopo.
As Sethodimela testified, that her niece was about to write her final examination of her final year in Public Management at her college but was instead murdered she broke down in tears
This prompted state prosecutor Trott Mphahlele and National Prosecution Authority (NPA) spokesperson Mashudu Malabi-Ndzangi to also show major distress and ask for a ten minute adjournment.
When court proceeded, Sethodimela described how Ramabulana would take money from her NSFAS fund to help her unemployed mother and her siblings with food and vowed not to forgive Manaka for stabbing her 90 times.
“I know yesterday I said I would forgive him. But when I relive this I withdraw my forgiveness. How can you stab a person 90 times. Who would forgive this person?” She asked as she broke down.
Manaka, who took the witness stand first this morning, swung his body up and down as he took questions from Mphahlele and Presiding Judge, Maake Kgayakgo.
“Im sorry to the family for what I have done and want to take full responsibility for my actions,” he said.
When asked by Kgayakgo if he killed her before or after he raped Ramabulana, he said: “I don’t remember how many times I stabbed her before I raped her but after I was done I stabbed her some more, fearing that she would identify me if she were to be alive”.
Pretoria News
