Flavio Hlabangwane has been sentenced for the murder of his wife, Tshepang Pitse.
Judge Cassim Moosa, at the South Gauteng High Court, Johannesburg, handed the qualified actuarial scientist a life sentence for premeditated murder along with a 10-year sentence for defeating the ends of justice and an additional 15 years for violating a corpse. The 10 and 15-year sentence will run concurrently with the life term.
IOL previously reported that a woman discovered a dismembered body in the freezer at a home in Soweto. The woman had been visiting her boyfriend, who she met on social media.
She slept over after their first date and made the gruesome discovery while looking for something to cook. Hlabangwane was arrested, and it was established that Pitse was his cousin and wife.
Hlabangwane confessed to killing Pitse after having an argument over the use of her bank card. He further added that he plotted to kill her after he learnt she had cheated on him.
She was buried in 2022 without all her body parts. Initially, police thought that her murder was related to a ritualistic killing until the gruesome discovery.
During the trial, it came out in court that the couple had an abusive relationship.
There were also concerns about Pitse’s inheritance money following her mother's death. At the time, it emerged that Hlabangwane married Pitse to get his hands on her money.
IOL