WSU student Sibongile Mani set to appeal sentence
Walter Sisulu University student Sibongile Mani is set to launch an appeal against the five-year jail sentence imposed on her by the Eastern Cape Regional Court.
Mani was convicted on charges of theft after she spent some R800 000 of the R14 million mistakenly deposited into her account by the National Students Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) in 2017.
Mani was sentenced on Wednesday.
Her lawyer Asanda Pakade has expressed his shock at the length of the sentence.
READ: Sibongile Mani handed 5-year sentence after splurging NSFAS funds
"We are ready for that, we have always been ready throughout. If you were listening to the sentence itself, it was shocking. So it will still be a long journey."
But the National Prosecuting Authority in the Eastern Cape believes the sentence is appropriate.
Spokesperson Luxolo Tyali says the punishment fitted the crime.
"We want to commend the prosecuting team and the investigators and the job well done. The five years have been long, but what we wanted to achieve has been achieved today, but we do welcome the sentence."
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