A North West family feels let down by the country’s justice system after a 19-year-old was sentenced to three years of house arrest and community service after a joyride in his father's swanky BMW X5 ended the life of grandfather.
Daughter of the deceased, Jackie Jewell believed the punishment did not fit the crime.
In 2021, a 16-year-old Kgaugelo Masenya took his father's car for a drive. The teenage driver’s father is a captain in the police’s VIP Protection Unit.
IOL previously reported that 65-year-old Patrick Jewell had been standing on the pavement outside his home loading water bottles into his Hyundai i10. He was on his way to water the flowers at his wife's graveside.
Surveillance footage shows a white BMW X5 speeding around a corner, losing control and colliding with the small car where Jewell was standing.
Jewell was critically injured and transported to hospital where he died 20 days later.
Masenya was charged with driving a vehicle without a license and culpable homicide.
In May, the now 19-year-old Masenya pleaded guilty to the charges and this week the Brits Magistrate's Court sentenced him to three years under correctional supervision (house arrest). He is also required to perform 16 hours of community service a month at the Polokwane Provincial Hospital.
"Eventually, after three years, he’s got his sentence. Even though I still don’t feel it’s enough, but the justice system, according to them, this is what he needs to get," Jackie said.
She further thanked AfriForum for their assistance in expediting the investigation.
AfriForum Private Prosecution Unit spokesperson, Barry Bateman, said delays in finalising cases prolongs the trauma experienced by victims and loved ones.
"While we are relieved Jacky can put this process behind her, waiting three years to finalise the matter has caused her and her family additional grief. And it would not have reached this stage without intervention from AfriForum’s Private Prosecution Unit. The delay in finalising the case also impact the accused, and we support Jacky’s hope that the sentence serves as a lesson to Masenya, and that he grows up to be a role model for others," he said.
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