"Facebook rapist" Thabo Bester was on Thursday jailed for life for the murder of Johannesburg model and car saleswoman Nomfundo Tyhulu.
He appeared in the Western Cape High Court before acting Judge Judith Cloete and assessor, advocate Juliana Thayson, who sentenced him to an additional 25 years on a charge of aggravated armed robbery.
The armed robbery charge related to possessions that he took from Tyhulu after killing her. Bester, 23, stabbed Tyhulu, 23, in the chest, in a bed-and-breakfast in Cape Town in September last year. The two were on holiday together.
They met at the BMW dealership in Sandton, Johannesburg, where she had sold him a car. They started a long-term relationship before going to Cape Town on holiday.
After stabbing Tyhulu, Bester flew to Durban. On his departure from the bed-and-breakfast in the morning, he told reception staff that Tyhulu was still sleeping and not to be disturbed before 2pm.
These remarks were an aggravating factor, the judge said.
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