Upington - A hitchhiker who robbed and killed a man who had given him a lift was jailed for 22 years by the Upington High Court, Northern Cape police said on Monday.

Budiki Semho, 31, was sentenced to 22 years in prison for killing Matswe Lokailwe and another 12 years for robbing him of his car, said Colonel Priscilla Naidu.

The sentences would run concurrently.

Lokailwe picked up Semho on the N14 in 2011.

Naidu said that as Lokailwe was removing Semho's bags from his boot, he was hit with a wheel spanner on the head.

When Lokailwe lost consciousness, Semho wrapped a T-shirt over his head to ensure he did not regain consciousness.

Semho then dumped Lokailwe's body along a gravel road, and drove the car to Kuruman.

He was later arrested when he was spotted using the car as a taxi.

Naidu said Semho was expected to return to court to face charges of escaping from custody.

He had escaped from police cells, but was re-arrested shortly afterwards.

Sapa