The Scottburgh Regional Court sentenced SAPS Detective Warrant Officer, Muzi Euchalystius Mkhize (57) to six years imprisonment, wholly suspended for a period of five years with conditions after he pleaded guilty to culpable homicide where Senior State Advocate Addelaid Ann Ferreira Watt (62) was fatally shot.
The incident took place in November 2019 when Watt was prosecuting a farm robbery matter in the uMzimkhulu Regional Court where firearms and other possessions were stolen. While the case was still proceeding in court, the complainant in the matter asked that a firearm be given back to him as he feared for his life following the robbery. This was done; however, the firearm was returned to court as an exhibit. Mkhize was the investigating officer in the matter.
In his plea statement, Mkhize agreed that he failed to check whether the returned firearm was loaded or safe, as he erroneously believed that the firearm was not working. He said that during court proceedings he had dozed off and was startled when the court suddenly adjourned. This caused him to lose control of the shotgun and in an attempt to regain control of the gun, a shot was discharged. Watt who was sitting diagonally across from him was struck on her left hip and subsequently died due to a loss of blood. Mkhize admitted that in trying to regain control of the firearm, he unintentionally pressed the trigger or caused the firearm to discharge a round.
Mkhize conceded in his plea that his conduct was negligent and advised that he never intended to shoot or injure Watt as they had shared a fruitful working relationship.
The conditions of Mkhize’s sentence are that:
– He pays a fine of R20 000 to a shelter for abused women and Children in Pietermaritzburg on or before 11 March 2022.
– He is not convicted of a similar offense that is committed during the period of suspension.
Prior to accepting the guilty plea, the State, represented by Senior State Advocate Naveen Sewparsat consulted with the Investigating Officer and Watt’s daughter; and both parties agreed to the State accepting the plea.
In a Victim Impact Statement handed into the court, Watt’s daughter Lindsay Ann Hawkins described the sheer loss and
devastation she felt after losing her mother. She described her mother as a kind and vibrant woman who lit up the room when she walked in. Hawkins said that she has suffered psychological, emotional, and physical trauma as she and her mother were inseparable.
The National Prosecuting Authority welcomes the finalisation of this matter and we hope that this will help bring closure to Adv. Watt’s family. Adv. Watt was stationed at the Pietermaritzburg office of the Director of Public
Prosecution in KwaZulu-Natal. She was an asset to the organisation and is dearly missed by her colleagues and friends.
