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    Man sentenced to two life terms for assault and murder of his ex-girlfriend



    Wednesday, October 30, 2024 – The High Court of South Africa
    sitting at Vredendal Magistrates Court has sentenced a 38-year-old man, Calvin
    Cloete, to two life terms and 31 years direct imprisonment for the r3pe and
    m8rder of his ex-girlfriend, Carmen Gouws, 21.

    Initial reports reveal that on 7 October 2023, Cloete
    attacked the victim with an axe and also r3ped her. Her body was discovered by
    children in a field in Flentersvlei Farm in the early hours of the morning.

    On Tuesday 29 October 2024 he was sentenced to life
    imprisonment for rape, life imprisonment for m8rder,13 years direct
    imprisonment for attempted m8rder and 5 years direct imprisonment for
    kidnapping. He will only be eligible for parole after he has served at least 25
    years in prison

    The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) in a statement on
    Wednesday said the State charged Cloete with attempted m8rder, r3pe,
    kidnapping, and attempted m8rder.

    “He pleaded guilty to all the charges in terms of Section
    112(2)of Act 51 of 1977 but denied that the murder was premeditated. During his
    cross-examination, Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions Adv Louise
    Freister-Sampson asked him if he knew that when he dragged her out of the house
    with an axe in hand he would kill her. He confirmed that he knew,” the
    statement read.

    Cloete told the court that he found the deceased with her
    friends including. He asked for two beer bottles and got angry when he noticed
    she ignored him. He hit her on the head with a beer bottle. He asked her to go
    with him, but she refused.

    He took out a panga and threatened her but she refused to go
    with him. He then forced her to go with him while beating and pushing her on
    the way to the tuck shop.

    He threatened her “Will jy sien hoe waai jou tette”. He took
    her to a secluded area where he raped her. He held his hand over her mouth to
    stop her from screaming. He then chased her away.

    The affair between the 38-year-old members of the 27s gang
    who obtained the rank of Captain 1 was characterized by gender-based violence.
    He confessed during cross-examination that he beat her up often. She was 13
    years old, and he was 29 when they got involved and became intimate when she
    was 15. He claimed that on the day of the murder, 07 October 2023, they had a
    date. She found her with friends and the man she had an affair with was
    present.

    He left with her, but she resisted showing the man with whom
    she had an affair that she did not leave and have sex with him voluntarily.
    After intercourse, she threatened to open a rape case against him which would
    result in him going to jail and for her to be with the man. He claimed he was
    not jealous and did not belong in prison.

    He hacked her to death with an axe on her 21st birthday. Her
    postmortem report shows that no part of her body was spared from injuries. He
    stomped on her body to such an extent he left imprints of his shoes on her
    back. He felt guilty and decided to go to the police to hand himself over but
    walked past the police station as he needed to hustle for something first as he
    was a member of a gang and needed to take something with him. The accused has a
    colourful list of previous convictions which include four counts of malicious
    property damage and eleven counts of assault.

    The second attempted murder charge he was convicted and
    sentenced for, came after he stabbed Isak Booi in the neck after he refused to
    answer a question. He confessed that as a ‘plank’ – a member of the 27s gang,
    they believed in spilling blood, and he carried a knife all the time. He
    confirmed that even if he were released from prison, he would continue carrying
    a knife.

    In aggravation of sentence, Adv Freister-Sampson argued that
    Cloete represented toxic masculinity and epitomized everything women abhor. She
    argued that the deceased was groomed into a relationship with the accused, and
    he believed that if he could not have her, nobody could have her. She
    emphasised to the court that the only fitting sentence was life imprisonment.

    Judge Slingers sentenced the accused to 13 years direct
    imprisonment for Gouws attempted, life imprisonment for her rape, five years
    direct imprisonment for her kidnapping, 13 years direct imprisonment for Booi’s
    attempted murder and life imprisonment for Gouws’ murder.

    She ordered the rest of the sentences to run concurrently
    with the life imprisonment sentences. She further ordered, by Section
    276B(1)(b), that the accused shall not be eligible for parole until he has
    served 25 years.

    Adv Nicolette Bell, Western Cape Director of Public
    Prosecutions, expressed shock at the level of gender-based violence the young
    woman had to go through which resulted in her death.

    Adv Bell applauded the investigation and prosecution team
    saying each of the successful prosecutions was a culmination of months and even
    years of painstaking investigative and prosecutorial work and exemplifying
    hundreds of similar cases prosecuted successfully daily.

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