Bock, 21, sentenced to 15 years for strangling teenage girlfriend

High Court has sentenced Johannes Bock (21) to 18 years’ imprisonment for the murder of 17-year-old Sara Jonker three years ago in the Hardap Region.

Judge Claudia Claasen suspended three years of the sentence for five years on condition that Bock is not convicted of murder or culpable homicide involving an assault during the period.

The judge explained that Bock committed the offence during the final stages of adolescence, when he had not yet attained full emotional maturity and judgment, particularly in his handling of conflict.

“The law does not treat a youthful offender in the same manner as an adult offender," Judge Claasen said.

The State had initially asked the court to impose a 30 -year jail term, arguing that the domestic nature of the killing called for a severe sentence with retribution as a primary consideration.

Bock, who was 19 when he killed Jonker , had pleaded guilty to murder on the basis of dolus eventualis — meaning he foresaw the possibility that his conduct could cause her death but proceeded regardless.

The court heard that both Bock and Jonker had been drinking alcohol on the day of the incident when they became involved in an argument.

Jonker reportedly grabbed Bock by his clothes around the chest and refused to let go despite him asking her to release him.

Bock became angry and strangled her. She died from asphyxia.

Judge Claasen said Bock was not so intoxicated that he did not know what he was doing, while Jonker's act of grabbing his clothing did not justify the severe response of strangling her.

Upbringing

Jonkers, she said, was only 17 and had contributed to the upkeep of her grandfather’s home after her grandmother died. She performed most of the household chores, leaving a significant void in her grandfather’s home following her death.

Judge Claasen said the fact that the killing was not premeditated did not diminish its cruelty.

“Although it was not a premeditated act, it does not detract from the cruelty of the act".

The court also heard about Jonker's difficult childhood.

Her uncle, Peter Jonker, testified that she had been left in the care of her grandparents when she was two years old. She later had to leave school in Grade 6 because her grandfather could not afford a school uniform.

Her uncle told the court that Jonker's father had been largely absent from her life and that her mother struggled with alcohol addiction and depended on sporadic employment.

The court also considered Bock’s upbringing.

Bock testified that he grew up in extreme poverty, with neither of his parents employed. As a child, he travelled with his father in search of casual work on surrounding farms.

Because his parents had no money and there was no transport from the farms, he attended school for only one month in his entire life.

He later worked casually on a farm, helping to put up fences between 2021 and 2022. He had also spent almost a year in pre-trial custody.

Bock told the court that he deeply regretted killing Jonker and understood the consequences of his actions.

He said he had personally apologised to Jonker's grandfather, although other family members did not accept his apologies.

He also told the court that he had stopped drinking alcohol following the incident and regarded the experience as a life-changing lesson.

Judge Claasen found that Bock’s remorse was genuine. She said she was satisfied that he understood the wrongfulness of his conduct and that his guilty plea represented an attempt to take responsibility for what he had done.

[email protected]