Comfort Sifundo Nkosi.
The Mpumalanga High Court, has sentenced a 25-year-old serial rapist, Comfort Sifundo Nkosi, to three life terms and ten years’ imprisonment for gender-based violence (GBV)-related offences committed in Nhlazatshe.
According to the spokesperson for the Mpumalanga National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), Monica Nyuswa, Nkosi was convicted for the murder of his girlfriend, Noxolo Posporia Mazibuko, and three counts of rape.
The two had been in a domestic relationship and shared a child. Between October 2017 and September 2023, Nkosi terrorised women in Nhlazatshe. One of his rape victims was his ex-girlfriend, while the other two were attacked as they returned home from local taverns.
Details of the Attacks
Nyuswa detailed the accused’s pattern of violence:
- “On October 14, 2017, in Nhlazatshe, the accused encountered his ex-girlfriend at a local shop. He dragged her outside, assaulted her, and threatened her with a knife before forcing her to his residence, where he raped her. She later escaped and reported the matter at a nearby medical centre, where she was examined.
- On October 31, 2021, another victim was returning home from a tavern when she accepted a lift in a vehicle in which the accused was a passenger. After she alighted near her home, Nkosi followed her, grabbed her, and raped her twice,” she said.
- Nyuswa also said on September 3, 2023, Nkosi attacked yet another woman returning from the Blue Moon Tavern. He assaulted her, dragged her into nearby bushes, and raped her.
The murder of his girlfriend
Later that same morning, following the third rape, Nkosi went to a local tavern where he met his friends and continued drinking.
“When Mazibuko, his girlfriend, arrived, Nkosi confronted her about the whereabouts of their child. He then grabbed her outside, assaulted her with a stone until she became unresponsive, and transported her to his residence using a wheelbarrow. Emergency services were notified, but Mazibuko was declared dead at the scene. The police were alerted, and Nkosi was arrested shortly thereafter,” Nyuswa said.
Compelling evidence and conviction
In court, Nkosi pleaded not guilty to all charges. However, State Advocate Senzo Zindela presented compelling evidence, including testimonies from victims describing a similar modus operandi, eyewitness accounts, and DNA analysis linking the accused to the crimes.
“The court found the State’s witnesses credible and consistent, leading to his conviction on one count of murder and three counts of rape,” Nyuswa explained.
Victim impact statements, facilitated by Court Preparation Officer Nomfundo Mokoena, were also presented. Some victims revealed that they had dropped out of school due to the trauma they suffered, while the deceased’s mother expressed ongoing grief and an inability to come to terms with her daughter’s death.
In aggravation of sentence, Advocate Zindela emphasised the brutality of the offences and noted that Nkosi showed no remorse, even telling his friends that he would “bury” Mazibuko when they tried to intervene.
Judge’s remarks and sentence
In delivering judgment, Judge Lindiwe Vukeya remarked that the country “is swimming in a pool of gender-based violence” and that the accused had left deep emotional scars on his victims.
Finding no compelling or substantial reasons to deviate from the prescribed minimum sentences, she sentenced him to:
- Life imprisonment for murder.
- Life imprisonment for each of two counts of rape.
- Ten years’ imprisonment for the remaining count of rape.
Nkosi was also declared unfit to possess a firearm, and his application for leave to appeal was dismissed.
