Johannesburg - Paulinah Mothokoa Monyebodi, 48, from Olievenhoutbosch, appeared in the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court.
According to National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Lumka Mahanjana, Monyebodi faces a charge of premeditated murder for allegedly killing her husband.
It is alleged that on the morning of April 18, 2023 the accused approached a man unknown to her on the street and invited him to stay with her and her husband at their home for free.
“She told him she had a problem, and mentioned that she had poisoned her husband four days ago and needed his help to dig a ditch and bury the dead body, because the husband’s body had been lying in the house for some days.
“In response to her request, the male person pretended to agree to the request, but instead went to report the matter to the police.
“Later that day, Monyebodi was arrested after the man pointed her out to the police. The case has been remanded to April 28, 2023 for further investigations in respect of her bail application,” said Mahanjana.
Meanwhile, another serial rapist, a 45-year-old suspect believed to be behind a string of rape cases reported between 2017 and 2021 at Namakgale and Lulekani policing areas outside Phalaborwa, has been apprehended in Limpopo.
According to Colonel Malesela Ledwaba of the SAPS, the suspect was arrested on Friday, April 21 by members of the family violence, child protection and sexual offences unit in Phalaborwa after he had been positively linked to nine cases of rape in which a similar modus operandi had been used.
“The suspect has been terrorising residents in Matjetje and Makhushane, and has raped female victims aged between 15 and 36. He would prey on women walking at night with male companions, threaten them with a knife, and then force them into the bushes and rape the women.”
“The suspect was first arrested in 2012 after he allegedly raped a 23-year-old woman who was walking alone at night at Makhushane village and raped her in the bushes at knifepoint. The court then referred him to undergo mental assessment, and he was later released after the court ruled out that he had mental illness,” said Ledwaba.
Ledwaba confirmed that the man had committed another rape in 2019 and remained unknown until he was linked through DNA evidence, became a person of interest, and was ultimately connected to the nine cases.
The suspect will appear in the Namakgale Magistrate's Court on Monday, April 24.
The Star