Pretoria – Two former apartheid police sergeants, 61-year-old Abraham Hercules Engelbrecht and 60-year-old Pieter Stander, have been found guilty of the premeditated murder of 23-year-old student activist Caiphus Nyoka.
The Congress of South African Students’ member was murdered in 1987.
Earlier on Tuesday, 2 December 2025, the Pretoria High Court, sitting in the high court in Johannesburg, found the two former apartheid police sergeants guilty of premeditated murder.
However, the court acquitted 75-year-old Major Louis Van Den Berg, a former commanding officer.
Evidence before the court shows that in the evening on 23 August 1987, the two police sergeants who were members of the Reaction Unit within the South African Police Service (SAP) met to discuss a plan to kill Nyoka.
They devised a plan to raid Nyoka’s home in Daveyton.
In the early hours of the next day, 24 August 1987, at about 02:30, Stander and Engelbrecht, and other members of the Reaction Unit, who are also charged separately, arrived at Nyoka’s home.
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The apartheid enforcers stormed Nyoka’s room, where they found him asleep. Three of his friends were also sleeping in the same room.
After identifying Nyoka, they removed the friends from the room and thereafter proceeded to shoot the anti-apartheid student activist nine times.
Nyoka died on the scene.
During the trial, the state called five witnesses: Caiphus Nyoka’s two sisters, Alegria and Mothasi Nyoka, Gugulakhe Exodus Nyokane, one of the three friends the student activist was with on the night he was shot dead, Dr. Rousseau, an expert witness who was the TRC researcher, and the Investigating officer, Lieutenant Colonel Beukman.
Thereafter, accused 1, who is now acquitted, and accused 2, brought a section 174 application claiming that the state had no case.
However, the court dismissed their applications.
National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) Regional Spokesperson Lumka Mahanjana said the court found that the state had proved its case beyond a reasonable doubt that Engelbrecht and Stander killed Nyoka.
“The NPA welcomes the judgment where the two were found guilty. However, the state will study the judgment in respect of the acquittal of Louis Van Den Berg,” stated Mahanjana.
“This court outcome is encouraging as this is a right step towards providing justice for the Nyoka family.”
The matter was adjourned to 11 December 2025 for the bail application, pending the sentence of Engelbrecht and Stander.
Judge Ismail Mohammed remanded the pair in custody.
Nyoka’s murder was among some 300 serious human rights violations recommended for prosecution by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission more than 20 years ago.
