The High Court of the Eastern Cape, sitting in Mthatha, has sentenced 26-year-old Sihle Manciya to four life terms in prison for two counts of murder. The court’s ruling comes in response to Manciya’s brutal attack that resulted in the murder of his 17-year-old girlfriend, Simcelile Nozulu, and her 70-year-old grandmother, as well as the attempted murder of two other family members.
On the fateful night of April 29, 2024, Manciya traveled from his home in Lwandlana Location to the Nozulu residence in Sulenkama in Qumbu, under the Kumkani Mhlontlo Local Municipality precinct, armed with an Okapi knife. Suspecting his girlfriend of having an affair with another man, he broke into the family’s rondavel, where they were asleep, and indiscriminately stabbed each adult present, including the 70-year-old grandmother. The grandmother was found with a slit throat at the scene, and Simcelile was declared dead upon arrival at the hospital. The two surviving victims sustained serious injuries and have since been improving.
State Advocate Avumile Bikitsha argued that Manciya’s guilty plea reflected regret rather than genuine remorse, emphasizing the premeditated nature of the crime. He noted that Manciya had traveled a considerable distance, armed with intent, to attack innocent women. The court ultimately agreed with the prosecution’s call for severe punishment, rejecting the defense’s plea for a lighter 15-year sentence based on Manciya’s youth and cooperation with authorities.
Eastern Cape Director of Public Prosecutions Barry Madolo welcomed the decisive verdict, underscoring the invaluable nature of human life and the necessity for stern legal action against femicide perpetrators. “Justice must be served for the victims and their families,” Madolo stated, reinforcing the commitment of the National Prosecuting Authority to combat violence against women in society.
