Truck driver Sibusiso Siyaya made his first high court appearance on Monday, January 22, for a pre-trial conference. Mr Siyaya, from Jozini, KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), was charged with 20 counts of murder, after the truck that he was driving ploughed into a bakkie transporting school children in September 2022.
On Monday, the matter was adjourned to April 15, for a trial which will be held in the High Court sitting at the Pongola Magistrate’s Court, said National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) regional spokesperson Natasha Ramkisson-Kara.
“Siyaya will remain in custody, following his unsuccessful bail application last year. Last year the state was able to prove that he is a flight risk who might abscond if released on bail,” said Ms Ramkisson-Kara.
“Siyaya was accused of driving a fully laden truck into a bakkie, killing 20 people (majority of which were children) in northern KwaZulu-Natal in 2022. He was charged with 20 counts of culpable homicide.”
Among those who died in the accident were 18 children between the ages of five and 13 years old, as well as a pregnant student teacher and the bakkie driver. The children were on their way home from school when the crash occurred.
According to former Minister of Transport Fikile Mbalula, Mr Siyaya overtook on a barrier line and drove into the oncoming lane for over 1km, endangering the lives of other motorists before he crashed into the bakkie taking the lives of 20 people.
