I lured mom to killers and watched her being murdered, daughter tells court
A South African woman has been sentenced to 20 years in prison after confessing to luring her mother to her death for an insurance payout. The victim was subjected to multiple murder attempts before being strangled, and several accomplices are currently standing trial.
Why it matters
This case highlights the extreme consequences of financial desperation and the prevalence of insurance-related violent crime in specific regions.
An Mpumalanga woman has told the Mbombela high court how she lured her mother to a group of murderers, and then stood guard at the door watching as they pinned her down and killed her for an R80,000 funeral policy payout.
Nonhlanhla Mthunywa also told the court that her mother, Wanter Dlamini, 62, had survived poisoning and a shooting plan until she was finally strangled to death.
Mthunywa is a state witness who was also charged with her mother’s murder, but entered a plea agreement with the state after she confessed to the crime, saying she could not sleep as her mother was haunting her. She is serving a 20-year jail sentence.
Mthunywa’s sister, Bathabile Mthunywa, 39, their neighbour Nombuso Ndwandwa, 41, and Steen Mashakeng, 36, are on trial for the murder and rape of Dlamini. Mashakeng is Nonhlanhla Mthunywa’s boyfriend.
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