Alberton father accused of murdering his daughter (2) asks court for mercy
In June this year, Stefanus Bezuidenhout and his wife, Belinda, were convicted on multiple counts, including abuse, rape and the murder of their daugher, Chane, at the High Court sitting in Palm Ridge.
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JOHANNESBURG - The legal team of a father accused of murdering his two-year-old daughter has asked the court to show him mercy, calling him a family man.
In June this year, Stefanus Bezuidenhout and his wife, Belinda, were convicted on multiple counts, including abuse, rape and the murder of their daughter, Chane, at the High Court sitting in Palm Ridge.
On Wednesday, the couple from Alberton is in the Johannesburg High Court for sentencing arguments.
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Stefanus Bezuidenhout’s advocate, who the court has ordered cannot be identified, has asked the court not to slap him with the minimum prescribed sentence for his crimes, being life in prison.
Chane Bezuidenhout faced severe abuse at her parents’ hands. They also raped her.
Her father’s counsel in court on Wednesday, though, detailed his troubled childhood and drug history and said that he was a "family man" who had provided for his wife and children, asking the court to show him mercy.
She also said he hadn’t gone for counselling after his daughter’s murder even though his wife was convicted thereof and he, of being an accessory after the fact, and that he wasn’t "doing well".
Judgment on sentencing has been reserved until 26 September.