Drunk Driver Who Killed Newly Engaged Couple Sentenced to 8 Years Behind Bars, SA Left Fuming

• In 2017, Andrew Kagiso Malele lost control of his vehicle and crashed into Ruan Coen and Jessika Kennedy’s vehicle, killing the couple
• He was sentenced to eight years imprisonment on Thursday, 21 July in the Pretoria Regional Court
• Malele was found guilty of culpable homicide and drunk driving and also had his driver's licence revoked

PRETORIA - A man who caused an accident that killed a newly engaged couple in 2017 was sentenced to eight years behind bars on Thursday, 21 July. Andrew Kagiso Malele was found guilty of culpable homicide in the Pretoria Regional Court.

He was sentenced to an additional three years for drunk driving, which will run concurrently. According to TimesLIVE, Malele’s driver’s licence was also cancelled.

At the time of the accident, Malele lost control of his vehicle and crashed into Ruan Coen and Jessika Kennedy’s vehicle. They both died instantly, while Malele sustained minor injuries.

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AfriForum’s Private Prosecution Unit assisted Coen’s family after the docket went missing and has now welcomed the sentence. The unit’s communications manager, Barry Bateman, said the branch worked closely with the Silverton and Sinoville detective branches to recompile the docket.

News24 reported that Magistrate Kallie Bosch said Malele was solely responsible for the deaths of two young people and that he stood before the court with blood on his hands.

South Africans react to the sentence and believe that it is far too short:

Lynne Philip wrote:

“It is time people started becoming more responsible... this is hardly an appropriate punishment for this terrible crime. This is not going to teach him anything, because he will be out before you know it.”

Shamila Khan Khan said:

“Eight years, two lives were lost. This justice system failed us.”

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Senzo Kunene commented:

“This is where our justice fails. In other words, two lives were lost in vain. In four years’ time, if not less, he will be out.”

Tess Kirpal wrote:

“This 'concurrently' must stop. If they are issued two separate terms that show that it was acknowledged that there were two separate crimes, so two separate terms must be served.”

Orlando Cliff Mphafudi posted:

“No man... just eight years, this guy deserved a minimum of 20 years, because now with eight years, he will be out in two years in this weak country.”

Muhanelwa Vhutshilo Rowan added:

“We have always been saying our biggest enemy in our country is our justice system, but people always find a way to point out police officers.”

Two drunk South African policemen caught on video after almost crashing cop car into road construction workers

In a related matter, Briefly News also reported two policemen were filmed seemingly under the influence of alcohol after the state vehicle that one was driving almost collided with two road construction workers.

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A video of the incident was posted on social media by SA Trucker, and shows one of the construction managers confronting the two policemen in their vehicle.

Source: Briefly News