FOUR MEN SENTENCED TO LIFE FOR BRUTAL MURDER OF TWO LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS WHILE ON DUTY

21 MAY 2025

FOUR MEN SENTENCED TO LIFE FOR BRUTAL MURDER OF TWO LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS WHILE ON DUTY

Cape Town, South Africa, The High Court of South Africa, Western Cape Division, has sentenced Ndumiso Lutshetu, Ashwin Kennedy, Bongani Mvamveki and Malibongwe Witbooi to two life sentences and 60 years direct imprisonment after the State proved beyond a reasonable doubt that they planned and brutally murdered two law enforcement officers while in the line of duty.
The court convicted them for the murders of Cape Town law enforcement officers, Jan Nieuwenhuys and Simthembile Nyangiwe, whom they shot in broad daylight while they sat in a marked vehicle guarding a construction site at Sweet Home Farms, Samora Machel, on the afternoon of 04 September 2019. They were also convicted on two counts of robbery with aggravating circumstances, after they robbed the deceased of their firearms, illegal possession of firearms and illegal possession of ammunition. It sentenced them to life imprisonment for each murder, 15 years direct imprisonment for each count of robbery with aggravating circumstances, 15 years direct imprisonment for illegal possession of firearms and 15 years direct imprisonment for illegal possession of ammunition. Judge Daniel Thulare ordered the sentences he imposed for the two counts of robbery with aggravating circumstances, illegal possession of firearms and illegal possession of ammunition to run concurrently with the two counts of murder. He declared them unfit to possess a firearm.

Adv Carl Gertse of the Organised Crime Component of the NPA achieved the commendable sentence after piecing together circumstantial evidence, which included the evidence of a forensic analyst, a doctor who conducted postmortem reports and police officers who scoured the area leading to the arrests. The evidence indicated that the two officers were guarding workers of Usher Construction at a construction site. They had just returned from lunch when the accused pounced. Their two colleagues, in a separate vehicle and on the other side of the construction site, heard the gunshots and found their bodies riddled with bullets.
Police, backed by the army, converged at the construction site, and police started looking for clues.

Warrant Officer Nguma, a Commander of the Crime Prevention Unit at the Samora Machel Police Station, received a tip-off from his informer, who provided vital information about the whereabouts of the suspects, that they were armed and may soon leave the area if no immediate action was taken. Warrant Officer Guma, other police officers and members of the army held a briefing and 10 police officers and 18 soldiers drove to Ramaphosa Informal Settlement, where the accused were hiding. The informer accompanied them to point out the shack, as shacks in the area had no addresses. The accused were arrested within less than two hours of committing the heinous crimes. They pleaded not guilty, and at the close of the State’s case, they brought an application in terms of Section 174 of the Criminal Procedure Act, PA, which Adv Gertse successfully opposed.

During the trial, Adv Gertse argued that the way the shooting was executed, it appeared that both victims were unable to defend themselves. The accused killed two law enforcement officers in the execution of their duties, guarding a construction site so that others can work in the area without fear and earn an income. Murders, robberies, and extortion on construction sites were prevalent in the Western Cape. From the evidence led, the accused committed the offences to obtain guns from the deceased. Should they not have been apprehended by the swift response of the police, they may have committed further offences with the firearms.

The number of cartridges found on the crime scene and the wounds the deceased sustained can only be an indication that the accused went there with one purpose, and that was to kill the deceased. Society's interest in the effective punishment of murderers by the courts is obvious. Society demands that people who commit heinous crimes must be punished. Society should be protected against crime, which is attained through the prevention of crime and the deterrence of criminals by administering punishment to those convicted of crime. The deceased are law enforcement officers. Society relies heavily on them to protect itself from crime.

Handing down a sentence, Judge Thulare said the City of Cape Town was struggling with attacks on its workers at construction sites where it had active projects. He said the message from the gangs was simply that even with your deployment of law enforcement officers, you can’t stop us, for we will kill and rob your guards in broad daylight. It seemed that the crime was intended to intimidate the municipality into submission to the gangs’ dictates.

Western Cape Director of Public Prosecutions, Adv. Nicolette Bell applauded the investigation and prosecution team for their tenacity in ensuring justice for the families of the deceased and their colleagues in law enforcement. She said an attack on law enforcement was an attack on the State (government), and it cannot be overemphasised how important it is to ensure that those who commit such crimes receive the maximum sentences our courts can hand down. The NPA will be vigorous in its pursuit of perpetrators of such crimes to ensure their sentences serve as a deterrent.

Issued by:

Eric Ntabazalila
National Prosecuting Authority
Regional Communications Manager – Western Cape
Tel: (021) 487 7308
Mobile: 073 062 1222