Happy heavenly 40th birthday: Leigh Matthews remembered

It should’ve been celebrated with a birthday bash to remember. Instead, the parents of slain student Leigh Matthews – murdered by Donovan Moodley almost 20 years ago – are marking her 40th birthday milestone by lighting a candle in her honour.

This weekend, friends of Leigh’s parents, Rob and Sharon, encouraged South Africans to do the same.

In 2004, the naked body of the Bond University student was found after being kidnapped and murdered. Donovan pleaded guilty to murder, kidnapping, and extortion, after confessing to shooting and killing Matthews.

LEIGH MATTHEWS REMEMBERED ON 40TH BIRTHDAY

In a Facebook post on Saturday, 8 July, the founders of the Reeva Steenkamp Foundation acknowledged the 40th birthday of Leigh Matthews.

The foundation shared: “Our thoughts are with Rob and Sharon Mathews and Karen Hidden, Leigh’s sister,  this very difficult weekend. Leigh would have celebrated her 40th birthday today”.

The foundation encouraged the public to remember the young woman by lighting a candle.

Like Leigh, Reeva was brutally killed in a gender-based violence attack. Similarly to Donovan Moodley, Reeva’s killer, Oscar Pistorius, has been denied parole.

Leigh Matthews’s parents are represented by attorney Tania Koen, who also represents the Steenkamp family.

ALSO READ: Last Christmas behind bars for Oscar Pistorius, Donovan Moodley?

KILLER DONOVAN MOODLEY SEEKS ‘UBUNTU’ OVER PAROLE BID

Meanwhile, Donovan Moodley – the man who kidnapped and murdered Leigh Matthews – is demanding parole based on the spirit of “Ubuntu.” This, after his fifth failed bid in March. But her parents, Rob and Sharon, claim the move would be grave, as he is “extremely dangerous.”

Donovan  – who is studying law in prison – approached the Gauteng High Court in a bid to have his parole recommendations set aside.

In 2005, Donovan Moodley was sentenced to life imprisonment for murder, 15 years for kidnapping, and ten years for extortion. Moodley’s sentence runs concurrently.

In 2021, 17 years after Leigh’s murder, IOL reported that Donovan Moodley was up for a parole hearing.

In January 2022, the family of Leigh Matthews hotly contested the process as part of their mediation. Ultimately, Moodley  – who claimed that his application was “not assessed fairly and objectively – was denied parole.

ALSO READ: Leigh Matthews’s dad on Oscar Pistorius parole: ‘System is broken’

Fast forward to March 2023, and Donovan was given another parole hearing. Again, he was unsuccessful. According to The Citizen, the parole board recommended to Minister of Justice and Correctional Services Ronald Lamola that Donovan should not be given an early release.

Donovan has now submitted court documents to the Gauteng High Court, asking the minister to show him “Ubuntu.” According to IOL, in his affidavit, the convicted criminal says – representing himself – said: “They (the minister and the other respondents) are pleaded (sic) to show ubuntu to me and only oppose (the) facts and not legal technicalities.

“I am aggrieved by the decision as I believe the decision does not comply with the peremptory provisions of just administrative action.”

Donovan has also asked that all documents be made available to him based on the decision not to grant him parole.

Following his 2005 conviction, Donovan Moodley has appealed the court’s ruling multiple times. His requests have been denied by the Gauteng High Court, the Supreme Court of Appeal, and the Constitutional Court.

Donovan’s request for a retrial – based on claims he was “framed” – was also denied.

ALSO READ: Leigh Matthews parents: ‘Donovan Moodley has not changed’