The three men accused of murdering well-known Durban artist, Leighton Frank Agg in September 2020, have been sentenced to life and 20 years imprisonment.
The trio, Robert Chisi, 27, Lehlohonolo Motlomelo, 33, and Thabo Michael Lebofa, were sentenced in the Durban High Court on charges of murder and robbery with aggravating circumstances.
The court heard how the men worked with Agg and his father, Frank Agg, who would buy homes, refurbish them, and sell them.
According to spokesperson for the National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson in KwaZulu-Natal, Natasha Ramkisson-Kara, Chisi and Motlomelo worked for the Aggs as plasterers at the properties.
"At some point, Agg told them he wanted to hire professional plasterers and this angered the men who believed the job was theirs. They then hatched a plan to rob and murder him. They recruited Lebofa, a friend of Motlomelo. The men created a WhatsApp group, called 'Hustlers' where they communicated with each other," she said.
The men then attacked Agg while he was in the garage.
"They tortured him to reveal the PIN codes to his bank accounts. They then strangled him with an electric cord and bludgeoned him to death with a hammer. They also stole his cellphones, laptop, and wallet containing his bank cards," Ramkisson-Kara said.
Lebofa drove the bakkie, with Agg's body inside, to Greytown, where he dumped it in a river before stripping it of its registration plates and licence disc and abandoning it.
Ramkisson-Kara said the men transferred the money from Agg's bank account, made withdrawals, and went on a shopping spree with the deceased's bank cards.
"Agg’s body was later recovered by the police. Upon questioning, Chisi revealed his involvement in the crime. Agg senior then enlisted the assistance of a private investigator, who traced the other two men using cellphone tracking data," she said.
Ramkisson-Kara said Senior State Advocate Nadira Moosa led the evidence of Chisi’s statement together with cellphone data and evidence of financial transactions reflected on Agg’s bank statement.
Moosa successfully argued for the court to increase the sentence for the robbery charges from the prescribed minimum sentence of 15 years imprisonment to 20 years imprisonment," Ramkisson-Kara said.
She said the state also submitted a Victim Impact Statement compiled by Agg senior and facilitated by Court Preparation Officer Thandeka Nadi Mofokeng.
"In his statement, Agg senior said that his son’s death has devastated their entire family, and they are still grieving. He said that he still cannot sleep, and the memories of the incidents following his son’s murder will haunt him forever," Ramkisson-Kara said.
IOL