A South African policewoman was sentenced to six life sentences and an additional 95 years in prison on Friday for killing her boyfriend and five relatives, in a chilling scheme to cash in insurance claims.
Rosemary Ndlovu, 46, was found guilty last month of killing her cousin, sister, boyfriend, niece, nephew, and another relative between 2012 and 2017.
The court also found her guilty of attempting to kill her mother, another sister, and her sister’s five children.
In addition to the six life sentences for murder, the judge added an extra 95 years in prison for incitement to murder, attempted murder, and insurance fraud.
“Effective years of imprisonment is then life,” said Judge Ramarumo Monama.
Much of the trial was broadcast live in South Africa, where the gruesome details stunned a nation numbed by its staggering murder rate.
Ndlovu cashed in an estimated 1.4 million rand ($95,000, 81,000 euros) from her bloody deeds, and was arrested before she could complete plots against her mother and her sister’s family.
With chilling intent, Ndlovu mostly hired hitmen to ambush her victims and either shoot or bludgeon them to death, the court found.
But she personally poisoned one sister, lacing her tea and then strangling her when that failed to work.
She was caught red-handed in 2018, when one of her hitmen tipped off the police after she hatched a plan to burn down another sister’s house.
Nation Africa