BLOEMFONTEIN: The Free State High Court has sentenced murder accused Rampimpi Dankie Sefafe (43) to 20 years’ direct imprisonment for the brutal murder of his live-in partner, before trying to cover up his act. The Lesotho national was found guilty of stabbing Nomqebasi Elisa Moqebelo to death on 13 August 2024.
Lt Col. Thabo Covane, provincial spokesperson for the police, said compelling evidence gathered by the investigative officer led to the conviction and sentencing of the accused on 20 August. He said evidence revealed that Sefafe had used a sharp object to stab the deceased and attempted to hide his act, cleaning the victim and dressing her in clean clothes, despite being aware she was possibly dead. Covane said the accused reported the incident at the Bloemspruit Police Station three days later, on 16 August.
Covane said Sefafe gave different accounts of events, at a certain point falsely claiming that the victim had committed suicide. “Rampimpi’s first account of events to the police was that Moqebelo had stabbed herself to death. The police attended to the scene and on arrival found Nomqebasi lying motionless in bed under clean blankets. The members observed blood splatters inside the shack and stains on Rampimpi’s clothes. The deceased’s blood-soaked clothes were discovered inside a plastic bathtub, hidden under the bed,” said Covane.
He said the investigation by WO Johannes Martinus Roodt revealed that Sefafe had murdered the victim.
“Roodt was tasked with completing the investigation, with the process revealing that the people around the couple were aware that Rampimpi and Nomqebasi abused alcohol and were constantly having serious altercations.”
Covane said the court took into account the comprehensive testimony and evidence before finding the accused guilty of murdering the victim.
