OUT LGBT Well-being welcomes the sentencing on Wednesday of Luvuyo Jonas to life in prison for the brutal murder of Andile Ntuthela, or “Lulu” as they were also known.
After numerous delays and postponements, Jonas pleaded guilty on Tuesday in the Uitenhage Regional Court to the killing, citing his “religious beliefs” as a motive.
Lulu was a member of the LGBTIQ+ community who went missing in March 2021. Their burned and mutilated body was later found buried in a shallow grave at Jonas’s home in KwaNobuhle, outside of Uitenhage.
OUT, which monitored the case and attended the trial, noted that the court recognised the seriousness of the heinous crime and that Lulu’s murder had a broader impact on the LGBTIQ+ community. This was reflected in the judge adding five years to the minimum sentence of 15 years.
OUT believes that it is vital that the justice system takes hate crimes seriously and sends a message that such acts of violence will not be tolerated. Lulu’s family expressed their gratitude for OUT’s support as well as their relief that Lulu received some measure of justice.
