Lens Marcia

Age 52. A group of three armed men launched a targeted ambush against the couple on the property. The attackers plundered the residence and targeted the couple directly. The only item stolen during the entire attack was a .38 Special revolver belonging to Mrs. Lens. Both victims died from gunshot wounds inflicted by a 9mm Parabellum firearm. Nico Lens was gunned down, and Marcia Lens was discovered on the ground with her hands raised in a "hands up" position, having been shot execution-style with the firearm pressed directly against her head. The alarm was raised by local farmers, and the Groenvlei Police Station responded to the scene.Law enforcement officials from the Newcastle Task Team tracked the perpetrators and enacted three arrests within weeks of the attack. The suspects were apprehended in the neighboring Mpumalanga province while in possession of the .38 Special revolver stolen from the crime scene. The three suspects were identified as Bheki Moleko, Mlaliseni Ngwenya, and Siyabonga Sithole. They initially appeared in the Utrecht Magistrate's Court facing counts of murder and house robbery.The legal proceedings escalated to the Madadeni High Court. One of the primary co-accused, Siyabonga Sithole, who was 26 years old at the time of arrest and was already serving a suspended sentence for a prior culpable homicide conviction, was successfully convicted. On May 19, 2016, the Madadeni High Court sentenced Siyabonga Sithole to two life sentences for murder and a 15-year prison sentence for armed robbery. He was also handed an additional three years for the illegal possession of a firearm and three years for the illegal possession of ammunition.