FORMER Lieutenant-Colonel Cordelia Mogoerane was sentenced to life imprisonment for killing her husband, Major-General Thekiso Hendrik Mogoerane, in the South Gauteng High Court on Friday, 10 February.
Mogoerane (62) killed the retired intelligence officer not far from his home in Norkem Park, Ekurhuleni, months after retiring in 2018.
She was accused, along with seven other people, including family sangoma Ntombizodwa Dlamini (73).
His lifeless body was discovered along the P91 in Kempton Park on 17 January, and the post-mortem report revealed the cause of death as strangulation.
Mogoerane was later linked through cellphone records and arrested in June, together with Dlamini, Muziweshinga Zondo, Bongisiwe Lukhele, Musa Mayisela, Thulani Nxumalo, Sanele Mphuthi and Thokozani Zondo.
Mayisela died while Lukhele was gunned down outside the Vosloorus Police Station when she went to comply with her bail conditions.
Dlamini, Mayisela and Nxumalo were acquitted and the state withdrew charges against Zondo following investigations that revealed he abandoned the conspiracy to murder the retired officer.
During Mogoerane’s bail application, Captain Robert Mathebula told the Kempton Park Magistrates Court that she had consulted the sangoma to help kill her husband, and she gave her muthi to do so. When the muthi did not work, they hatched a plan to hire hitmen.
“Evidence brought before court was that the deceased was sedated by Mogoerane, who then called the hitmen to take him. But on arrival, they found that he was still awake and ran away,” said National Prosecuting Authority spokeswoman Phindi Mjonondwane.
She added that when the deceased eventually fell asleep, his wife called the killers to come back, and that is when Zondo decided not to join them anymore.
“Upon arrival, they loaded him into Lukhele’s vehicle while another accused drove his car. They later strangled and left him in his car,” said Mjonondwane.
Prosecutor Carla Britz told the court that Mogoerane had planned the murder over a period of time, with no regard on how it would affect his family.
She asked the court not to consider her claim that the deceased was abusive towards her, citing that she failed to substantiate her allegation by presenting such evidence.
