Free State killers jailed for life

07 February 2013 - 21:04 By Sapa
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Image: Gallo Images/Thinkstock

Three men were jailed for life by the Bloemfontein High Court for the killing of a Free State farmer, police said.

Hendrick van Schalkwyk, 35, and Rodger Siyale, 36, were sentenced to life for murder and 15 years for robbery with aggravating circumstances, spokesman Sergeant Fikiswa Matoti said.

A third man, Gilford Mahlakamatsa, 40, also received a life sentence for murder, 15 years for robbery with aggravating circumstances, and another 15 years for possession of an unlicensed firearm.

The men shot farmer Thomas Ferreira, 54, co-owner of Tom’s Place resort south of Bloemfontein, twice in the chest during a robbery. They then tied him up.

The murder was committed on his farm Riversford at Tierpoort, near Tom’s Place, on November 27, 2011.

Ferreira died while seeking help from neighbours.

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