A Limpopo police officer has been sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of his landlord’s son in the Limpopo High Court sitting in Thohoyandou.
Sergeant Nditsheni Lefty Mphephu, 46, was convicted of the murder of Teith Muthige earlier this month.
According to evidence before the court, Mphephu was renting a property owned by Muthegi’s father in Makwarela, Thohoyandou.
The court heard that on November 20, 2023, Sergeant Mphephu, who was stationed at the Public Order Policing Unit in Thohoyandou, was playing loud music from his car while he was busy washing it at around 10pm.
Muthegi confronted the off-duty officer for playing loud music while students were studying for their final examinations.
Following the altercation over the loud music, Mphephu went inside his house, retrieved his firearm, and shot Muthegi six times, in the stomach and upper body.
After the shooting incident, the police sergeant fled the scene to Vuwani. He was arrested the following day.
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Initially, Sergeant Mphephu was charged with attempted murder, but the charge was upgraded to murder when Muthegi succumbed to his injuries on November 25, 2023.
The case was marred with several delays, and while Sergeant Mphephu was initially denied bail, he was granted R20,000 bail at a later stage.
At one stage, the police sergeant thought he would be able to put the matter behind him after the case was struck off the roll due to outstanding ballistic evidence. However, once the investigations were completed, the State reinstated the case and prosecuted Sergeant Mphephu.
The court sentenced him to life imprisonment for the murder and further declared him unfit to possess a firearm.
