A 41-year-old plumber who beat his 19-year-old girlfriend to death with an iron rod and dumped her body under a bridge has been sentenced to 28 years' direct imprisonment, but the victim's family believes he deserved a life sentence.
The Mthatha Regional Court on Friday sentenced Ayanda Nkathula for the March 6 2025 murder of Smanye Zilindlovu at Payne village near Mthatha.
Zilindlovu's family said the sentence was disappointing, particularly as Nkathula had allegedly threatened to kill her on several occasions before the murder.
Family spokesperson Vulikhaya "Fish" Zilindlovu, a viral content creator known for "Inja & Fish" from Mqanduli, said the family had expected the court to impose life imprisonment.
"We were expecting a life imprisonment sentence. She was only 19 and killed like an animal and dumped under a bridge.
"With this sentence, he will now be considered for parole after only 15 years in jail, and when it is life, it would have been 20 years or more before being considered for parole.
"We appreciate the work of the police investigator and the prosecutor as well as the court, and we know no sentence will ever bring back my sister, but 28 years is just not what we expected in a case like this and in a matter that is of gender-based violence and domestic violence, a scourge that brought national outrage and should be dealt with harshly by our courts," Zilindlovu said on Sunday.
He said the family remained traumatised by the murder but had to find a way to move forward.
Despite their disappointment with the sentence, the family praised the investigating officer and prosecutor for building a watertight case and welcomed the court's decision to deny Nkathula bail.
Police spokesperson Capt Welile Matyolo said Nkathula, a self-employed plumber, and Zilindlovu, both from Kwaaiman in Mqanduli, were living together at Payne when an argument broke out.
Nkathula repeatedly struck his girlfriend with an iron rod before dumping her body under a bridge.
Police believed jealousy was the motive for the murder.
Nkathula, who was 22 years older than Zilindlovu, was arrested on March 11 2025 and remained in custody after being denied bail.
OR Tambo police district commissioner Maj-Gen Norman Modishana and the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) welcomed the sentence.
They commended Det Sgt Khanyiso Loqani of Mthatha Central Detectives and regional court prosecutor Yongama Hlangu for their work in securing the conviction.
NPA spokesperson Luxolo Tyali said evidence presented by Hlangu had proved beyond reasonable doubt that Nkathula intentionally killed his girlfriend following an argument fuelled by jealousy, then attempted to conceal the crime by dumping her body.
"The state argued in aggravation that femicide remains prevalent in the OR Tambo region and that courts must impose sentences that deter perpetrators. This sentence affirms that intimate partner violence will not be tolerated," Tyali said.