Killer mom gets 20 years for 7-year-old son's murder

SHE killed her 7-year-old son because he reminded her of the man she once fell in love- the boy’s father. 

Now Drezene Jonkerman has been handed a 20-year jail sentence for the murder of her son Ashwin.  The Oudtshoorn Regional Court sentenced her to  25 years, with five suspended, on condition she does not commit another murder during that time.

On what should have been her 39th birthday, Jonkerman woke up in her home in Oudtshoorn and prepared to attend church, according to her plea. 

A friend came to her house and they used drugs. When the friend left, she finished preparing for church and started preparing Ashwin. It was during bath time when she suddenly started seeing the child’s father in her mind's-eye and got very angry.

She admitted having had a ‘very bad’ relationship with Ashwin’s father. 

She started strangling him until his body became limp and carried him to the bedroom. She left his body in the bedroom and went to church. She came back from church and found his body still lying on the bed. She then called a neighbour and an ambulance which confirmed that the boy had passed away. 

The plea stated that she did foresee that by strangling Ashwin, she could cause his death and despite that knowledge, she still proceeded to strangle him. 

In her mitigation of sentence, the 39-year-old mother of two other minor children claimed that she and her ex-boyfriend, Ashwin’s father, had a very tumultuous relationship. 

She claimed that he used drugs, assaulted and raped her on various occasions. She did not report these incidents because she was financially dependent on him. 

Prosecutor Goulding Hyron countered this claim as he led evidence where the deceased’s father denied the claims. 

The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said there was also no official case that she opened against her ex-partner. 

“The ex-partner conceded that they used drugs but her addiction worsened, and she started to sell groceries and the furniture of their house.  He ended their relationship due to her drug use and months later he was informed that she had killed their child,” NPA Western Cape spokesperson, Eric Ntabazalila said.

 The court ordered Jonkerman to serve at least two-thirds of her sentence before becoming eligible for parole. On her release, the court ruled that she may not work with children or possess a firearm.

Cape Times