Picture: (Courtesy of Media24) Xander Bylsma is appearing at the Mahikeng high court for the sentencing of the murders of Marna Engelbrecht and Sharnelle Hough which he committed in a small town of Stella
By KEDIBONE MOLAETSI
South African National Civic Organisation (SANCO) in the North West welcomed two life sentences given to Xander Bylsma (20) by the North West High Court in Mahikeng on Friday. Bylsma strangled and killed his former girlfriend, Sharnell Hough (17), and her friend, Marna Engelbrecht (16) at Stella High School hostel back in 2018.
Hough and Engelbrecht were learners at the school during the atrocity.
SANCO provincial chairperson, Paul Sebegoe described Bylsma’s sentencing as a victory against the scourge of Gender-Based Violence (GBV) and femicide. Sebegoe said the scourge of GBV remains a blight that continues to rob women of their freedom, human rights, and dignity.
“The harsh sentence reaffirms that perpetrators of GBV who have waged an insistent war that transcends class and race against women and girl children have no place in our society. It will serve as a deterrent and restore public confidence in the criminal justice system.
“We hope that the Hough and Engelbrecht families that lost their loved ones in the gruesome killings will find closure knowing that justice was ultimately served,” he said.
The North West High Court Judge, Ronald Hendricks sentenced Bylsma to life imprisonment on two counts of murder for strangulating and hanging the deceased. The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) regional spokesperson, Henry Mamothame said bodies of the deceased were discovered at the school hostel, Huis Eesterhuizen.
“Evidence presented in court by the state indicated that the murder was premeditated and driven by malice. A friend to both Bylsma and Hough testified on how the accused called her on the 24 May 2018, citing his disapproval of Hough having moved on with her new boyfriend.
“When asked what he intends to do, he vowed to confront Hough in two days and turn her life into a living hell to a point that she commits suicide. On 26 May 2018, the lifeless body of Hough was discovered hanging on the hostel staircase with a rope around her neck, while Engelbrecht’s body was found in the hostel bathroom with signs of strangulation,” Mamothame said.
He added that on the day the two bodies were discovered, the accused, in the company of a private investigator was handed over to the Vryburg Police Station to be charged for two counts of murder. Mamothame said more evidence pointing to the accused was gathered through telephone records and text messages.
“The evidence presented in court by the private investigator confirmed that Bylsma confessed to murdering the two victims, while he was accompanying him to the police station. In his statement to the police, presented in court, Bylsma confessed to the murder but pleaded not guilty,” he said.
Prior to sentencing, a social worker from the Department of Social Development responsible for probation services, Portia Pedinyane gave testimony to her account on the pre-sentencing interviews held with the accused, the parents of the victims, and the school personnel. Pedinyane confirmed that through assessing the accused, it came out clear that he had no mental history and his upbringing was normal with no underlying family or social challenges.
“This was corroborated by both Bylsma’s parents who have divorced, but indicated that their co-parenting was seamless as they created a loving environment for him as their only child. The accused showed no remorse for his actions as he continued to plead not guilty although the court has already found him guilty for the crime he committed,” she said.
Through this evidence, the state maintained its stance that the accused at all material times had the necessary intention to murder his victims. In pleading for a lighter sentence, Bylsma’s defense attorney pleaded to the court to be lenient to the accused as he was emotionally immature at the time he committed the crime, a first-time offender, has the support of both parents to help in his rehabilitation and that he is young and has his future ahead of him. However, this was dispelled by the State’s senior counsel, Johan Smith who argued that the accused should be given a maximum sentence for the brutal murder of the victims. Smith described the murder as highlighted in the post-mortem report, as painful and heart-breaking.
The Guardian 