Henri Van Breda, 23 a young South African man has been sentenced to three life terms in jail, on Thursday, for slaughtering his well to do family, with an axe, and maiming his sister in the process.
Judge Siraj Desai told the assembled in court “Each murderous attack on a family member is a severe crime and warrants the severest punishment,”
Henri Van Breda, received a further 15 years for the attempted murder of his sister.
Van Breda, who was wearing a blue shirt with a patterned tie and a light grey suit, showed no emotion as the sentence was passed. Van Breda’s girlfriend watched from the public gallery as he was led away by court officers.
He denied murdering his 21-year-old brother Rudi and parents Martin, 54, and Teresa, 55, and leaving his sister Marli struggling with near-fatal injuries to her head, neck and throat after the bloody attack in January 2015.
Van Breda was convicted of three counts of murder, one of attempted murder and one of obstructing justice on May 21 with the judge describing the verdict as “inescapable”.
Defence advocate Pieter Botha had called for a “merciful” sentencing, arguing that Van Breda was a first-time offender who was “barely 20” when he killed his family.
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