the victim sustained multiple stab wounds.
Image: DFA / Created with DALL-E / Illustration
A 60-YEAR-old parolee from Springbok will spend more than two decades in prison after the brutal stabbing of a woman in Bergsig last year.
According to Northern Cape police spokesperson Sergeant Molefi Shemane, the chilling attack unfolded on the evening of August 13, 2024, when residents reported a violent incident in the neighbourhood of Bergsig. Police officers responding to the scene found 46-year-old Lena Swaartbooi with multiple stab wounds, her injuries severe enough to prompt an immediate attempted murder investigation.
The attacker, Jan Maarman, who was already on parole at the time of the crime, was quickly identified as the suspect. Following an intensive investigation by the Springbok SAPS Detective Unit, he was arrested and prosecuted over the following months.
Justice caught up with Maarman on March 20 this month, when the Springbok Regional Court handed down a hefty 22-year prison sentence for attempted murder. The court also ruled that the sentence would run concurrently with time he still owes from previous convictions. In addition to his imprisonment, Maarman was declared unfit to possess a firearm.
The provincial commissioner of the Northern Cape, Lieutenant-General Koliswa Otola, hailed the investigative work that led to Maarman’s conviction, particularly the efforts of Detective Sergeant Estelle Magerman.
The case was also noted as part of the ongoing provincial efforts by SAPS to tackle gender-based violence and femicide and ensure that perpetrators of such crimes are held accountable and justice is delivered for victims.