SA Man Sentenced to 226 Years in Prison After Killing 2 Women and Filming Murder in Alaska
- Brian Steven Smith from Queenstown in Eastern Cape pleaded not guilty to 14 charges against him
- He murdered two Alaskan women, Kathleen Henry and Veronica Abouchuk, in 2019
- An Alaskan court sentenced the 53-year-old man to 226 years in prison for their murders
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The sentencing of a South African man in Alaska began with the Alaskan State Department saying that he was convicted on 14 counts, including two murders in the first degree, on 14 February 2024.
Source: Facebook
Sentencing of Brian Steven Smith in Alaska
The court was re-convened to pass a sentence on Brian Steven Smith. The presiding judge was Judge Kevin Mark Saxby, who, according to Court TV, had this to say when passing judgement:
There is no hope. There is no restoration. There is only preventing Mr. Smith from killing again.”
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The jury, in this case, had only needed less than an hour to decide the man was guilty of killing the two women and recording one of the murders in a hotel. Therefore, Judge Saxby’s stance was to ensure he did not repeat such a despicable crime.
Details regarding the other counts that he was sentenced for are multiple counts of sexual assault, tampering with physical evidence and misconduct involving a corpse.
According to CBS News, Alaska Superior Court Judge Kevin Saxby said at sentencing:
“Both were treated about as horribly as a person can be treated. It’s the stuff of nightmares."
In Alaska, the sentencing range for first-degree murder is 30 to 99 years in prison.
South Africans react to the sentencing
These are @Yolly16680's sentiments:
"Sickening! Let him rot in jail."
@DlaminiDukani asking how much it takes:
"226 years = a death penalty."
@DeejayPhlo felt it's a little close to home:
"He’s from Queeatown? Yazi Amaxhosa Abelungu are hectic."
@Nkullu07 questioning his nationality:
"He's not a South African... we only know Elon Musk as South African."
@josguy2013 asked for further action:
"He might have committed some murders here in South Africa, police, please check."
South African accent was vital to identify Smith
Smith’s unusual accent in the Alaska region was a distinction that led to his arrest. The video that he had recorded of him killing the one woman in a hotel room was recognised as foreign to Alaskans and that of a South African immigrant.
Queenstown connections
Smith had ties to South Africa, ran a guest house and planned to open his own hotel one day. He is married to Stephanie Bissland, an Anchorage, Alaska musician. They met online in 2023 and he proposed to her in KwaZulu-Natal. They are still married.
SA man facing 10-year sentence
A South African man is facing 10 years in prison or a minimum fine of R4.6 million for stabbing multiple people on a cruise ship.
Ntando Sogoni, who was employed on the vessel, attacked a patient and security personnel in the ship’s medical centre.
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Source: Briefly News
