Man 'killed to claim insurance payout' burnt alive – pathologist

The man who was killed, allegedly by his ex girlfriend and her husband, who then passed off his body as the husband's to claim more than half a million rand from insurance, was burnt alive.

This was the testimony of a pathologist who testified in the murder trial of Lerato and Sibusiso Mahlangu of Soshanguve.

Testifying at the Pretoria high court on Tuesday, Dr Rebecca Mashiya said not only was Sibusiso Sithebe still alive when he was burnt but that he was intoxicated as well at the time of his death.

"The level of alcohol in the specimen was 0.31%, so what does this mean? Does this mean that this guy was intoxicated?" judge Mokhine Masopa asked.

Yes, Mashiya responded.

Mashiya further testified that the report she obtained from her investigations showed that Sithebe sustained no injuries except the fire stains and that he was burnt alive.

"The level of carbon monoxide saturation was 70%, meaning it was more than the fatal level, so it shows that the deceased was alive at the time of the fire because the carbon monoxide level was significantly high," she said.

The state alleges that Lerato called Sithebe to her Soshanguve home on New Year's Day in 2022. And while Sithebe was there, she and her husband murdered him.

Afterwards, the couple allegedly burnt Sithebe's body, and then Lerato passed it off as belonging to Sibusiso Mahlangu, her husband, and claimed half a million rand in an insurance payout.

The couple was arrested in April year after Sibisuso Mahlangu was caught driving a suspected stolen car. It was when he was booked into custody that he allegedly told the police officers that he was registered as a dead person.

He and Lerato were charged with murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and three counts of fraud.

Meanwhile, the couple's neighbour Josphine Mashoene earlier testified that the body was found on an unburnt bed.

She said the bed and the blankets were not burnt and the only thing was that the bedroom ceiling had collapsed. .

''The deceased body was lying with one hand on the stomach and the other hand stretched on the side. The accused [Lerato] then took the hand and felt if there was any pulse. She then closed the deceased's eyes, shook the body, and while shouting 'Sibusiso', she chased us out.

"She cried so loudly and came outside [the bedroom], and threw herself on the ground. We even gave her water with sugar because we felt sorry for her," she said.

The investigating officer, Cpt Phanuel Molefe, told the court that Sibusiso Mahlangu had in a cool and calm manner voluntarily told him that he used petrol to burn the body.

The trial continues.