Sonja Raffanti was in the middle of a torrid love affair with Franciscus Vontsteen in Pretoria when, for reasons best known to herself, she suddenly decided to marry someone else. And after they were wed she went right on with her affair with Vontsteen, which was made all the more easy because her new husband went to work in another town.
Vontsteen, though, was insanely possessive and jealous of Sonja. One night he broke into her home and shot her new husband dead. At first Sonia told the police that a burglar was responsible for the killing, but when she eventually confessed that it was in fact her lover, Vontsteen admitted the crime.
He was sentenced to death but the week before he was due to hang he escaped from Death Row. He was quickly recaptured and hanged on Wednesday, October 4th, 1972, in Pretoria Prison.