Convicted Welkom graveyard murderer Charne van Heerden will have to spend at least the next 20 years behind bars, the Virginia Circuit Court ruled on Friday.
Free State Judge Albert Kruger declared Van Heerden a dangerous criminal who would have to convince a court again in 20 years if she was fit to be released back into society.
Van Heerden, 20, was accused of luring Michael van Eck, 23, to the Welkom cemetery where she and co-accused Maartens van der Merwe killed and dismembered him in April.
Some of his remains were found in a shallow grave at the cemetery, while others were found in the couple's fridge, which including his facial skin, eye and ears.
Other body parts were found in a cupboard and in the garden.
The case against an co-accused Maartens Van der Merwe, 24, was separated from Van Heerden's earlier in the hearing.
He will undergo further evaluation and his trial resumes in February next year.
He has not entered a plea yet. – Sapa