Zakhele Thekiso v The State

The appellant, Zakhele Thekiso, was convicted in the Southern Transvaal Regional Court, Daveyton, on five charges: murder, attempted murder, and three counts of kidnapping. He was sentenced to 20 years’ imprisonment for murder, 10 years for attempted murder, and 5 years’ imprisonment on each kidnapping count. None of the sentences were ordered to run concurrently, resulting in an effective sentence of 45 years’ imprisonment. His application for leave to appeal against conviction and sentence was refused by the Regional Court and subsequently by the North Gauteng High Court. A further petition concerning the refusal of leave to appeal against sentence ultimately served before the Supreme Court of Appeal.

The appeal was upheld. The order of the High Court refusing leave to appeal was set aside and replaced with an order granting the appellant leave to appeal to the North Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, against the sentences imposed by the Regional Court.

The case clarifies and reinforces the limited scope of appeals to the Supreme Court of Appeal concerning refusals of leave to appeal. It affirms that the correct test is whether there are reasonable prospects of success in the envisaged appeal, not whether the appeal would ultimately succeed. The judgment is significant in sentencing jurisprudence, particularly regarding cumulative sentences and sentence disparity among co-accused.