Sangoma implicated in toddler's murder makes U-turn on bail
The sangoma who was arrested in connection with the premeditated murder of two-year-old Kutlwano Shalaba has made an about-turn and wants to apply for bail.
Sebokoana Khoanyana, 50, made a brief appearance on Thursday and his matter was postponed to June 25 for a formal bail application.
Khoanyana appeared alongside Kutlwano's mother, Keneiwe Shalaba, 33, who is accused of lying about her son's disappearance in November 2024.
Shalaba is also facing charges of premeditated murder.
Khoanyana had initially requested that an attorney be made available so that he could plead guilty but was advised by the court that it was not the right time to plead.
His lawyer, Gladmore Nyamande, said his client had a previous conviction of assault in 2019, which he believes was withdrawn.
He was also convicted of possession of dagga but got a suspended sentence.
Speaking to reporters shortly after the matter was postponed, Nyamande said: 'On his first appearance, he was not aware of his legal rights when he told the court that he wanted to plead guilty.
'According to his rights, the first thing he needs to do is to apply for bail and this matter will go further than the magistrate's court. We are not at the stage [of the trial] for him to plead guilty. He is flip-flopping; we don't know. When we come back, he might say he wants to abandon bail.
'On the day [of his first appearance] he just thought that by appearing and saying he wanted to plead, then the whole matter would be finished,' he said.
A sangoma arrested in connection with the murder of Kutlwano Shalaba, 2, appears again in court alongside the child's mother Keneiwe Shalaba. The two are accused of killing Kutlwano in November last year. #BabyKutlwano @SowetanLIVE pic.twitter.com/12ZFiSmqwH
— Jeanette Chabalala 🇿🇦 (@J_chabalala) June 5, 2025
Khoanyana was arrested last Thursday after he led the police to a shallow grave at Waterpan Road in Bekkersdal, where the remains of a toddler believed to be Kutlwano were exhumed.
National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Lumka Mahanjana said the investigation revealed that on November 10 2024, Shalaba took the child to the sangoma and requested him to kill her child because she was not happy with the gender of the baby and was tired of hiding it from her family that the child was a girl.
'The mother then allegedly fed the baby poison and after the baby died, it is alleged that the two took the child and buried her in a shallow grave in Waterpan.'
Shalaba was denied bail in February.
She told police that Kutlwano was strapped to her back when he was snatched from her. However, she was arrested a few days later.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
eNCA
10 hours ago
- eNCA
NPA and ID come under fire for lack of progress
NPA headquarters JOHANNESBURG - The National Prosecuting Authority and the Investigating Directorate Against Corruption have come under fire for the slow pace at which they deal with cases. The NPA says it's unfair to judge the institution based on a few high-profile cases. As of now, there have been no successful prosecutions in State Capture-linked cases, but the ID says it has a new strategy.
Eyewitness News
16 hours ago
- Eyewitness News
Four men sentenced to long-term imprisonment after murdering woman for funeral policy money
CAPE TOWN - An adoptive father of a mentally disabled woman and three hitmen have been sentenced to long-term imprisonment after murdering the woman for funeral policy money. The four men were sentenced in the Knysna High Court on Friday. Mboneleli Msila was handed two life sentences for masterminding the murder of his adopted daughter, 22-year-old Nosipho Mafana in Plettenberg Bay. National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson Eric Ntabazalila says Mboneleli Msila says hitman Monde Tshemese will also serve two life sentences for his role in Mafana's murder. "Msila arranged for Mafana to take out three funeral policies with three different banks which would pay out an amount of R600,000 if she died an unnatural death." Ntabazalila says Msila and Tshemese planned Mafana's murder along with Mbulelo Jack and Lungisile Lucas. Jack and Lucas were sentenced to 17 years in prison for conspiracy to commit murder and 17 years for murder. After Mafana's murder in April 2022 Msila's claim for the policy was rejected after it became the subject of a police investigation.
SowetanLIVE
19 hours ago
- SowetanLIVE
EFF holds funeral service for KZN bus crash victims
On Sunday, the EFF is holding a funeral service for its members that died in a sideswipe crash on the R34 near Vryheid, Kwa Zulu-Natal last week. They were returning from a Youth Day event in Umlazi. The accident was a head-on collision between a bus and a truck. SowetanLIVE
