South African Man Sentenced to Life in Prison for Murdering Girlfriend Over Cheating Allegations
A South African man, Josaya Ndlozi, aged 51, has been sentenced to life imprisonment by the Mpumalanga Division of the High Court for the brutal murder of his girlfriend, Sophie Phumzile Malele, whom he accused of cheating. The sentencing took place on Tuesday.
The court declared Ndlozi automatically unfit to possess a firearm, as stipulated by Section 103 of the Firearms Control Act 60 of 2000.
Ndlozi and Malele, who were living together in Lydenburg, had three children. Before the tragic incident, Malele had obtained an interim protection order against Ndlozi, prohibiting him from assaulting, threatening, or harassing her due to the volatile nature of their relationship.
On the morning of February 8, 2023, an argument broke out between the couple while their children were at school. The situation escalated, leading Ndlozi to stab Malele in the upper body, causing her to collapse. Realizing that she was unresponsive, Ndlozi alerted a neighbor and the police. Malele was pronounced dead at the scene, with the cause of death being multiple sharp force injuries to the neck.
In court, Ndlozi pleaded guilty to the crime and was convicted of premeditated murder. State Advocate Senzo Zindela emphasized that Ndlozi’s guilty plea was due to the overwhelming evidence against him and not out of genuine remorse.
Acting Judge Manthata, before delivering the sentence, highlighted that Ndlozi had deprived Malele of her constitutional right to life, leaving their three minor children motherless. The judge also noted that gender-based violence and femicide continue to devastate communities, and there was no justification for deviating from the prescribed minimum sentence of life imprisonment.
The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) expressed satisfaction with the sentence, reaffirming its commitment to prosecuting cases related to Gender-Based Violence (GBV) and femicide. The NPA emphasized that this case serves as a stark reminder of the need to protect vulnerable individuals in society and hold perpetrators accountable.