A sangoma and the mother of a two-year-old girl face charges of premeditated murder after the child was poisoned and buried in a shallow grave.
Sebokoana Khounyana (50), a Lesotho national, appeared in the Vanderbijlpark Magistrates’ Court on Monday, 2 June 2025. He is charged with murder and human trafficking.
According to the NPA, the child’s mother, Kuneuwe Portia Shalaba (32), was already facing charges of human trafficking, conspiracy to commit robbery, and lying to police. The State has now added a murder charge.
MOM AND SANGOMA FED THE CHILD POISON
Police say Shalaba took her daughter, Kutlwano Shalaba, to Khounyana on 10 November 2024. She allegedly told him she didn’t want the child because she was a girl and claimed she had been hiding the truth from her family.
Shalaba allegedly fed the child poison. After the baby died, the pair buried her near Waterpan, Gauteng. Police arrested Khounyana on 29 May 2025. He allegedly confessed and led officers to the gravesite.
The court postponed the case to 5 June 2025. The State will oppose bail.
TEEN KILLED BY STEPFATHER
Police arrested a 52-year-old man for allegedly shooting and killing his 18-year-old stepson, Leewin Solomon, during a domestic altercation in Rosedale, Kariega, on Sunday night, 25 May 2025.
The shooting happened at around 21:28 at a house in Parkiet Street. According to police, Solomon stabbed his stepfather in the shoulder during an argument. The man then drew a firearm and shot the teenager.
Paramedics transported Solomon to the hospital, but doctors declared him dead on arrival.
Police recovered a 9mm Glock pistol at the scene and sent it for ballistic testing. They charged the stepfather with murder.
What does this brazen attack say about rising violence and safety?
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