Mom who hanged her two children while in emotional despair jailed

A mother who killed her two young children while in turmoil over her life with a cheating husband has been jailed for 10 years, less than the prescribed sentence for the murders due to mitigating circumstances.

Lehlogonolo Mary Bokaba of Saulsville, Pretoria, was 29 when she killed her two-month-old baby and eight-year-old child by hanging them with a cord in May 2022. She also tried, but failed, to take her own life.

She pleaded guilty when the case came before the Pretoria high court this week and was convicted.

According to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), Bokaba was in a relationship with the father of the baby and was staying with him in a back room in his parents' backyard.

“While the two were in a relationship Bokaba discovered the husband was continuously cheating on her and was not assisting her with the children,” NPA spokesperson Lumka Mahanjana said.

“On May 12 2022 she decided to leave her husband and called her mother to help her move on May 14 2022.”

In her plea statement, she told the court when she woke up on the morning of the planned move, she felt overwhelmed by the state of her relationship with her husband. She decided to kill herself and her children to save them from the consequences of growing up without a mother.

“After hanging and killing the children, she attempted to commit suicide by hanging herself but was unsuccessful. She untied the children, placed them on the bed, and called her mother-in-law.”

The mother-in-law saw there was a missed call from Bokaba and was concerned as she had not arrived at her in-laws' house to prepare food for the children.

“When the mother-in-law went to the back room to check, she found the bodies of the children on the bed. Police were called and Bokaba was arrested. She has been in custody since,” Mahanjana said.

Judge Mashudu Munzhelele sentenced a remorseful Bokaba to 10 years' direct prison for each of the children's murders, ordering the sentences should run concurrently.

The judge found there were substantial and compelling circumstances to deviate from the prescribed minimum sentence of 15 years on each count. Bokaba had committed the offences under emotional distress, she pleaded guilty, did not waste the court's time and was a first-time offender.

The judge made a plea that information should be made available to help women in such circumstances who feel they don’t have a way out.

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