On Thursday, Alutha Pasile appeared briefly at the East London High Court where he was sentenced for the brutal murder and mutilation of his late girlfriend, Nosicelo Mtebeni.
How many years was Alutha Pasile handed?
What was supposed to be the start of the trial, where he faced murder and defeating the ends of justice for stuffing the dismembered remains of Mtebeni in a suitcase, ended in a whimper.
Last week, Pasile informed the court of his change of heart and would not contest the charges levelled against him.
The 25-year-old had little input in Thursday’s proceedings when Judge Michelle Beneke handed him 25 years imprisonment for murder and 10 years for defeating the ends of justice. Both sentences will run concurrently.
Here’s why he pleaded guilty
Alutha Pasile was arrested on Thursday 19 August 2021, only a few moments after Mtebeni’s dismembered body was discovered in two bags on the corners of Fleet and Fitzpatrick Road, a short distance from the commune he resided in.
Eyewitnesses who’d allegedly seen Pasile dumping the suitcases pointed authorities to the communal residence and in his room, more of Mtebeni’s body parts were discovered.
The State had prepared to go into the murder trial with a strong case. Not only did Pasile provide a sworn statement, where he divulged crucial information behind his motive for the murder of his girlfriend, but he also left a trail of forensic evidence.
In his own words, Pasile murdered the University of Fort Hare student after he’d grown jealous of her acquaintance with another man. According to the 25-year-old, he’d found irrefutable proof that the 23-year-old LLB student was cheating on him and in the midst of a heated quarrel, she died from repeated blows to the back of her head.
Pasile had previously opted to represent himself in the murder trial but, in the 11th hour, he applied for legal representation. The defence, led by legal aid attorneys, would have had a mountain to climb in reframing Pasile’s confession and reintroducing a narrative where he was left with no choice but to murder Mtebeni in the brutal manner that he did.