Pregnant teen murder sentenced
The 26-year-old man convicted of murdering pregnant teenager Zanele Khumalo was sentenced to 20 years in prison by the High Court in Pretoria on Friday.
"The sentence I impose is the following: on count one, murder, you are sentenced to 20 years imprisonment," Judge Johan Kruger said.
"Sentences imposed regarding count two and three will run concurrently with count one," he said.
As Kruger read the sentence there were people saying "yes" and "amen".
As Kutumela made his way down to the cells the people in court started clapping hands. A member of the ANC Women's League said a prayer in court afterwards.
Khumalo's family members, including her parents, sat in the front row of the public gallery wearing black T-shirts with her face printed on them.
After the sentencing, JacaNews reporter Maryke Vermaak spoke to a friend of the deceased.
The deceased youngest sister recalls her most memorable moments with her older sister.
She was found dead at her parents' home in Garsfontein, Pretoria east, in April 2011.
He was also found guilty of stealing the teenager's nightclothes and underwear to hide the fact that he had raped her.
He did not testify, but claimed in his plea explanation they had consensual sex that morning and that she was alive and well when he left.
This was after he initially claimed, at the magistrate's court, that he had been at work all day.
Khumalo's naked body was discovered under a blanket on her bed when her parents arrived home from work.
They rushed her to hospital, but she had by then already been dead for about six hours.
- Sapa / JacaNews