A 24-year-old man has been sentenced to five life terms for murdering three family members and attempting to kill two others in a brutal attack in the Eastern Cape.
Mzomhle Matakhiya, from Ngqayimbana locality in Siphaqeni A/A near Flagstaff, was sentenced by the Mthatha High Court sitting in Port St Johns on Thursday, 12 March 2026.
The court heard that on 23 June 2025, Matakhiya fatally stabbed his 40-year-old mother, his 20-year-old sister and a 97-year-old woman who was the grandmother of his mother’s boyfriend. His mother’s boyfriend and a neighbour were also stabbed but survived.
He was arrested the same day and remained in custody after detectives from the South African Police Service opposed bail.
Matakhiya was convicted on three counts of murder, two counts of attempted murder and malicious damage to property. The court sentenced him to three life terms for murder, two life terms for attempted murder and 10 years for malicious damage to property, with the sentences running concurrently.
OR Tambo District Commissioner Norman Modishana praised detectives for securing a conviction and said perpetrators of gender-based violence have no place in society.
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