White South African farmers found guilty of killing Black teen

The incident sparked unrest in a small farming town about two hours away from Johannesburg

Mar 8, 2019

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Two white South African farmers have been handed a combined 41-year sentence for the murder of a Black teen who they accused of stealing sunflowers.

Pieter Doorewaard, 28, and Phillip Schutte, 35 were convicted of murder, kidnapping and other charges, The Independent reports. Doorewaard was sentenced to 18 years in prison, and Schutte to 23 years.

The crime was described by Judge Ronald Hendricks as “disgraceful” and “appalling” during the hearing at the High Court in Mahikeng. In April 2017, the farmers reportedly hurled 15-year-old boy Matlhomola Mosweu off a moving truck, breaking his neck.

The men argued that they caught the boy stealing sunflowers and put him in the back of the truck to take him to the police station, but said he jumped, causing his own death.

His killing incited riots in the racially divided town of Coligny, about 125 miles west of Johannesburg.

The judge determined that the killing “happened on the spur of the moment” and was not premeditated. He added, “The community of Coligny was terrorized by this.”

Racial tensions flared in the town where most farms and businesses are owned by whites. Residents rallied and rioted in the town after the teen’s death and took out their angst over the death against white business owners, especially.

In the courtroom were also members of the Economic Freedom Fighters, a group that has long fought to take property from white-land owners without compensation.