The Pietermaritzburg High Court has sentenced Thokozani Patrick Mhlongo, to two terms of life and a further three years imprisonment after he pleaded guilty to the August 2023, murders of Zanele Doris Mbuso, 62, and Moni Sophie Xulu, 81, in the uMgababa area. He was sentenced on October 23.
Mr Mhlongo, 60, also pleaded guilty to the theft of their cellphones. He apologised to their families saying that: “I was possessed by demons” when he brutally murdered the women. In his plea, Mr Mhlongo mentioned that he met Ms Xulu in 2014 when he approached her for employment as he did not have any money and she owned a daycare in the area.
Ms Natasha Ramkisson-Kara, regional spokesperson for the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), said Mr Mhlongo confided in Ms Xulu that he had no family and his family home was destroyed in 1994.
“He asked her to keep this a secret and not tell anybody. Xulu employed him as a security guard at the daycare and in return he lived in the outbuilding on the property for free. It was during this time he also met Mbuso, 62, who was in charge of the creche kitchen. He said earlier this year he had some issues with Mbuso because she accused him of stealing food from the kitchen.”
Mr Mhlongo further added that in August this year, he heard people discussing his background. Ms Ramkisson- Kara said he asked Ms Xulu about this and she apologised for divulging his secret. When he heard more people speaking about him, he decided to confront Ms Xulu again but only got the opportunity to do so on August 9, 2023.
“He said on the day, he was alone at the daycare as it was a public holiday. At some stage Xulu and Mbuso came to the daycare, he first approached Xulu saying that it hurt his feelings to hear people talking and laughing about him. She told him there was nothing she could do about it. She also told him she was tired of him stealing food from the kitchen,” said Ramkisson-Kara. “He asked Mbuso why she lied about him stealing food from the kitchen. The women then ignored him and spoke amongst themselves. Mhlongo mentioned this angered him, and he decided to exact revenge on them. He went to his room and fetched his nunchucks and a rope.”
He first assaulted Ms Xulu with the nunchucks and strangled her until she stopped moving. Ms Ramkisson-Kara said he mentioned that he decided to kill Ms Mbuso as she would implicate him in Ms Xulu’s murder. He tied Ms Mbuso’s hands and legs, put a packet over her head and strangled her as well. Mr Mhlongo said he dug a shallow grave on the creche’s property and buried the women. He also admitted to stealing their cellphones. He was arrested a week later, said Ms Ramkisson-Kara.
In aggravation of the sentence, Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions Advocate Mbongeni Mthembu handed in Victim Impact Statements compiled by Ms Mbuso’s son and Ms Xulu’s grandson and facilitated by Court Preparation Officer Bonakele Nokukhanya Mkhize. Ms Mbuso’s son said his mother took care of their family as well as the community at large. He said he could not get the images of how she was found dead, out of his mind. He added that their house feels empty without her there.
Ms Xulu’s grandson said his granny’s death was sudden and unexpected. He said his granny took care of all of them, and he and other family members hoped to get jobs so they could take care of her and repay her as a sign of gratitude.
The families of both the deceased described them as strong hard working women who were breadwinners for their respective families. Mr Mhlongo was sentenced to a term of life imprisonment for each count of murder and three years’ imprisonment for theft. The effective sentence is life imprisonment.