Man gets life term for wife’s murder that he blamed on ‘tsotsis’

A Lesotho national whomurdered his wifein Ngcobo and tried to pass the killing off as a criminal attack has been sentenced to life imprisonment. Seeiso Jaase, 43, was sentenced in the Ngcobo Regional Court on Thursday after being convicted of murdering his wife on April 2 2025. After the killing, Jaase fled to Lesotho but was arrested two days later and returned to SA through co-operation between the SAPS and Lesotho police.

The court heard that Jaase stabbed his wife to death at the couple’s flat before fleeing the scene, shouting that criminals had attacked them. Prosecutor Lindile Dwakaza led the evidence of a neighbour who lived in the same block of flats and responded after hearing the deceased screaming during the night. NPA spokesperson Luxolo Tyali said the witness found the victim lying in the doorway in a pool of blood.

“He saw the accused exiting the flat and jumping over the body of the deceased, who was lying in the doorway in a pool of blood. “At the time, the accused was shouting, ‘Tsotsis, tsotsis’, while fleeing the scene. “The neighbour pursued him, but the accused outran him and disappeared into a nearby forest,” Tyali said.

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Jaase pleaded not guilty and claimed he and his wife had been attacked by criminals inside the flat. “He testified that he had been struck with a hard object and lost consciousness and therefore could not explain how his wife sustained the multiple stab wounds that resulted in her death,” Tyali said. Under cross-examination, Jaase struggled to explain his conduct after the murder.

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