Jackie Phamotse hit with house arrest, fine for comments about Basetsana & Romeo Kumalo

JOHANNESBURG - Jackie Phamotse has been slapped with house arrest and a fine for her criminal comments about socialite couple, Basetsana and Romeo Kumalo.

Last September, the Randburg Magistrate’s Court convicted her of criminal defamation, crimen injuria and contempt of court for comments she posted on Twitter and in her book ‘I tweet what I like... So sue me’.

The comments saw the Kumalos drawn into what turned out to be baseless claims involving a sex tape.

On Tuesday afternoon, Phamotse learned her fate.

Phamotse has been placed under house arrest for two years for her crimes and given a fine of a total of R30,000 or 10 months in prison.

During her house arrest, she’ll also have to do 16 hours of community service a month and participate in various programmes.

Magistrate Saras Naidoo, who handed down the sentence, found Phamotse had shown no remorse.

She also honed in on the impact of Phamotse’s comments on the Kumalos’ lives, saying they’d been irreversibly changed for the worse.

She found, though, that direct imprisonment would not be appropriate but said had Phamotse not been a first-time offender, that things may have been different.