Action Society celebrated another major but bittersweet victory in court today as the killer of Lihle Zenzile was sentenced to life for her murder and rape at the Paarl Regional court. Lihle’s case is heart wrenching, and her family is deeply torn apart by what was done to her. Now, 621 days after she was killed, we finally have justice and we can only hope that this innocent girl’s family can find the strength to move on and heal.
The 10-year-old girl from Mbekweni in Paarl, was killed on January 6, 2023 by a close member of her family who was living in the same house as them. She went missing and after a lengthy search, her killer handed himself over to the police and indicated where her body was hidden. Forensic tests later revealed that he strangled her to death in a bathtub.
Her killer showed very little remorse as he received his sentencing in court today. The pathologist testified that Lihle had been sexually abused before she was murdered, and the judge said that sexual offenders like him should be taken out of society.
“These victories are the reason we keep going at Action Society. The thousands of hours that we spend in courts, the endless postponements and complications are all made worth it when we can say we have made a difference and brought some light into this world by removing someone like Lihle’s killer from our communities, far away from our children,” said Action Society’s Kaylynn Palm.
