Cape Town - Jealous ex-boyfriend Phillip April was sentenced on Tuesday to life imprisonment for the premeditated murder of teacher, Allison Plaatjies, of Clanwilliam and five years for the theft of her vehicle.
Acting judge Nontuthuzelo Ralarala sentenced April in Western Cape High Court on Tuesday for the brutal 2019 murder.
From the outset, State advocate Renee Uys rejected April’s “guilty” plea and called a post-mortem expert, Dr Linda Liebenberg, to testify to the sheer malevolence April displayed when he slit Plaatjies’s throat.
Uys argued that April, 26, tried to water down his version of events in court in an attempt to avoid a lesser sentence than life imprisonment – the minimum.
As part of April’s plea admissions, he admitted to killing the 24-year-old but denied that he stole her car and said she was the cause of an argument that led to her murder.
“On Saturday, October 26, 2019, I met with a few friends and we bought beers and went to a neighbour’s house to watch rugby. We drank the beers and watched the game.
“The deceased (Allison) arrived and informed me that she got something for us to eat from the school as they had a braai at the school,” April said.
He further admitted: “I asked her why did she go and take me from my friends, at my neighbour’s house, if she knew that she was also going out with her friends that night. The disagreement became too intense and I grabbed her by the throat and choked [her].”
Describing himself as “passive aggressive”, he admitted that he killed Plaatjies with two knives and attempted to clean the scene where her body lay with gaping holes in her throat and face. His lawyer argued that the murder was not premeditated.
During the trial it was revealed that Plaatjies wasn’t going out with her friends on October 26, 2019.
A witness testified that she was scheduled to attend a modelling show and the community members expecting her were concerned but not surprised when she didn’t show up.
The court heard that while they didn’t know she had already been killed, they suspected April was trying to isolate her.
Witnesses also testified that Plaatjies had been open about April’s abusive behaviour towards her.
Her colleague testified that Plaatjies broke up with April but he refused to accept it.