It has taken a court nearly a decade to find a man guilty of stabbing his wife to death in front of their five-year-old daughter in Mitchell’s Plain.
Last week the Mitchell’s Plain Regional Court found that on August 7, 2015, mom Candice Titus, 28, who worked in the banking industry, was killed by her husband of two years, Donovan Titus.
Candice was stabbed 30 times and their little girl survived the ordeal as she pretended to be asleep at the time.
It was a bittersweet moment for the family as the couple’s now 14-year-old daughter will have to live without her parents.
Magistrate Mary Jawcu immediately revoked Titus’ bail and sent him to Pollsmoor Prison.
Titus pleaded not guilty, claiming an intruder had stabbed Candice with a knife. However, there were no signs of forced entry to the family’s home.
Titus had injuries on his body and was even fed via tube while in hospital.
Titus and his legal team had rejected allegations that he had made certain admissions to a medical staff member.
He claimed he had experienced periods of confusion, hallucinations and dizziness while being on morphine and other medication.
But it was tickets for Titus when the State proved that he had sent a message to his brother admitting that he had killed Candice, along with a damning witness account from his young daughter.
Eric Ntabazalila, regional spokesman for the National Prosecuting Authority, confirmed the guilty verdict and said sentencing proceedings was set for 3 September, 2024.
Titus’ legal team recused themselves from the case and he has now applied for a Legal Aid attorney.
Candice’s mother, Sandra Bowers, who is their child’s legal guardian, added: “If you do something wrong you need to pay for it, this is what I explained to the child. Right now we have to think about the child and her well-being.”