Ballito mothers gets 18 years for killing her daughter

The KwaDukuza Regional Court has sentenced a 47-year-old woman to 18 years of direct imprisonment after she pleaded guilty (Section 112) to the murder of her four-year-old daughter in April 2022, in the Ballito area, north of Durban.

Regional spokesperson for the National Prosecuting Authority, Natasha Ramkisson-Kara said in her plea, the woman said that she lived with her husband and daughter.

The woman said her husband was a hospital administrator who travelled to various countries in Africa. She added that she and her daughter accompanied her husband on his travels. At some point her husband terminated his contract, however, he was still expected to travel out of the country, but less frequently, said Ms Ramkisson-Kara.

“During this time, the woman said she became severely depressed and wanted to take her own life. She said that the reason for her depression was that she missed her son (from a previous marriage) who lived with his father, and she said that she was sad about her husband being away,” said Ms Ramkisson-Kara. “She mentioned that she had suffered from depression for many years, which started with the post-partum depression she experienced when her son (her first child) was born.”

She said that on the morning of the offence, April 26, 2022, she was alone with the girl, as her husband was away.

After breakfast, while the girl watched TV, the woman planned to take her own life by drinking benzene together with sleeping tablets.

“The mother said that she felt she could not leave the girl behind with no one to take care of her. So she fetched two buckets, filled them with water, tied the girl’s hands and drowned her in the buckets of water,” said Ms Ramkisson-Kara.

“The woman said that she intended to kill the girl and knew that what she was doing at the time was unlawful. After killing the girl, she took several sleeping tablets and drank the benzene. When she woke up later in the day, she phoned the landlord and her husband and told them that she had killed her child. The woman was subsequently arrested.”

In aggravation of sentence, Prosecutor Paul Nel, handed in a Victim Impact Statement compiled by the girl’s father. In his statement, the man said that his daughter was killed in a cold-hearted manner. He said that he is emotionally drained as he was very close to his daughter. He misses cooking her favourite meals for her and spending time with her.

The woman was sentenced to 18 years imprisonment and she was declared unfit to possess a firearm. The NPA welcomes the finalisation of this matter. Ms Ramkisson-Kara said it is the NPA’s mandate to pursue justice on behalf of the victims of crime.