One of the accused arrested for murdering a couple on their farm in Aurora near Piketberg in 2023, has been convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment.

The court heard that the farm owner couple, Pierre and Belinda de Kock, were brutally killed by 3 farmworkers, who were Lesotho nationals, on their farm in June 2023. According to the National Prosecuting Authority, the accused, Phindile Pone, is one of the three perpetrators in the matter and is the only one who has been arrested.

The deceased couple were reportedly tortured and forced to transfer R230,000 into the bank accounts of the accused and one of the other perpetrators. The NPA’s Western Cape spokesperson, Eric Ntabazalila, says farm workers testified during the trial on the merits and the devastating effect the couple’s murders had on them.

According to the judge presiding over the matter, Pone planned the murders. He was accordingly handed two life sentences for the de Kock couple’s murders, 30 years for robbery with aggravated circumstances and a further three months for contravening the country’s immigration laws.

The Western Cape Minister of Police Oversight and Community Safety, Anroux Marais, has welcomed Pone’s conviction and sentencing.

“I thank the investigators for their meticulous work and dedication to bringing this murderer to justice. I also want to congratulate the prosecution team for securing this conviction.”

Marais says she hopes this successful conviction makes it clear that crime can never be justified and those who break the law will be harshly punished.