Johannesburg – Bafana Mahungela, who represented himself after he fired his Legal Aid lawyer, has been found guilty by the High Court in Johannesburg of the 2023 murder of pregnant Sandton schoolteacher Kirsten Kluyts.
High Court delivered judgment this morning, Friday 11 September 2026.
Twenty-three-year-old Mahungela, who was a college student when he committed the murder, was visibly upset after the guilty verdict was pronounced.
He complained about being found guilty without a lawyer to “defend his rights” and then demanded a bathroom break.
On his return, the accused, who had earlier been taking notes, was informed that he would be sentenced next month.
Schoolteacher Kluyts was 14 weeks pregnant when she was attacked while jogging in the George Lea Park in Sandton on 29 October 2023.
Her naked body was later discovered off a running track, with the post-mortem revealing blunt force head trauma and strangulation as the cause of death.
Even though Mahungela was captured on CCTV and was later found with Kluyts’ T-shirt, he denied fatally attacking the teacher.
Video evidence showed him entering the park at 8:06am in a black T-shirt and later walking in Kluyts’s blue T-shirt, carrying items that he disposed of in a drain.
However, the court rejected Mahungela’s claim that he found Kluyts unconscious, panicked after touching her, and put her shirt on before fleeing.
In his judgment, Judge Ian Cox described Kluyts’s death as “gruesome” and “violent,” resulting from a sustained assault.
Mahungela was convicted of murder, attempted rape, robbery with aggravating circumstances, and defeating the ends of justice.
Commenting on the conviction, #NotInMyName International said it welcomes “the judgment handed down by the Johannesburg High Court today, finding Bafana Mahungela guilty on all charges related to the heinous murder of 34-year-old Sandton teacher, Kirsten Kluyts”.
#NotInMyName International added that: “This conviction brings a measure of justice for a crime that shocked the nation and highlighted the ongoing scourge of gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF) in South Africa.
“This conviction is a significant victory for justice and a stark reminder that no woman should live in fear while going about her daily life.”
#NotInMyName International extended its “deepest condolences to the Kluyts family, whose pain cannot be undone by any verdict, but who can now see that the perpetrator has been held accountable”.
Commenting further, #NotInMyName International stated: “We commend the South African Police Service and the National Prosecuting Authority for their diligent work in securing this conviction.
“As an organisation founded in 2017 to combat gender-based violence and femicide, we remain committed to advocating for a society where women and children can live free from fear.
“We will continue to work tirelessly to ensure that those responsible for gender-based violence are brought to justice 365 days a year.
“We urge the court to impose the maximum sentence when Mahungela returns for sentencing proceedings on 27 October 2026.
“Anything less would betray the memory of Kirsten Kluyts and undermine the fight against GBVF in South Africa.”
