For the first time since causing the deaths of two little sisters in Mitchells Plain, the illegal taxi driver has apologised to their parents, calling his actions careless and selfish.
Sisters, Nurah, 2, and Nishaat Thomas, 6, died in March 2023 after a speeding Likhona Mgidi jumped a red robot on the corner of Merrydale Avenuew and Wespoort Drive in Portlands and slammed into their father’s Opel Corsa.
Mgidi, 23, appeared in the Mitchells Plain Regional Court for sentencing proceedings yesterday.
He looked straight ahead as his lawyer read out a letter addressed to Abduragmaan and Raihaana Thomas, wherein he admitted his guilt.
“To Mr. Thomas, no human should have lived through such trauma of having your kids ripped away from you. I take full responsibility for my actions.”
He concluded by saying that he hopes that the family could forgive him.
Mgidi’s lawyer asked the court to look at factors such as Mgidi being a first time offender, who did not waste the court's time.
She further told the court that her client, who has two young children himself, showed remorse and had also suffered mentally because of the trial, and proposed a three year suspended sentence for him.
Asked by the court why Mgidi was speeding that day, the lawyer said it was peak hour and he wanted to pick up the next load of commuters.
Tears flowed as the prosecutor stated that Nishaat had glass stuck to her face and blood all over her head when she got to hospital.
“She cried for her parents, but sadly passed on with her eyes open.”
Mgidi was found guilty of two counts of culpable homicide, and a charge of driving without a valid licence.
He will be sentenced on 31 October 2024.