Knysna man sentenced to 25 years for strangling partner in jealous rage

A KNYSNA man has been sentenced to 25 years behind bars for strangling his partner to death in a jealous rage.  

National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Eric Ntabazalila said the High Court of South Africa: Eastern Circuit Local Division sitting in Knysna sentenced Sandiso Faku for the murder of his partner, Ntombizodwa Mei.

The State charged Faku with murder and defeating and obstructing the administration of justice, and he confessed to the crimes in Section 112(2) of the Criminal Procedure Act, Act 51 of 1977 statement. 

Faku and the deceased were in a romantic relationship and stayed together.

“On April 25, 2025, the deceased’s work transport dropped her off at their residency at 9pm, and they visited Noxozola and her brother, where they drank. They later left for home, where they drank further. He claims that an unknown man came looking for the deceased, and his presence led him to confront the deceased. He accused her of cheating with the unknown man. Noxozola, her brother and the unknown male left, and the accused and the deceased were left alone in the house. They went to bed but continued arguing. He claims he became furious because the deceased started to bring up money issues, and he knew that was an attempt to get his attention away from her cheating,” Ntabazalila said. 

“He slapped her in the face as they were lying in bed next to each other because she kept denying that she was cheating. He decided to sit on top of her with his knees on top of her arms to prevent her from moving. He then choked her with his right hand by pressing it around her neck with force. He noticed that she was losing consciousness, spitting blood onto his t-shirt, and she became motionless thereafter. He panicked, went to the kitchen to fetch water, and attempted to resuscitate her, but it was too late.”

On the morning of April 26, Faku became scared that he might be caught and did not know what to do with the deceased's body. He decided to roll her body in blankets and pulled her out of the house to the outside toilet. 

“He placed her in an upright position on the toilet seat, but her body tipped over as he attempted to leave the toilet. He decided to throw her headfirst into the pit latrine toilet,” Ntabazalila said. 

Faku admitted to Senior Public Prosecutor Phumzile Nogonyoti that this was an attempt to hide the body and distance himself from the murder. 

“The deceased’s family members asked him about the deceased, and he lied to them that she was at work. Mei’s colleague informed her family that they had reported her missing, about the whereabouts of the deceased body, and that was how the police discovered the body of the deceased in the toilet.”

Faku regretted that he committed the offences and requested the court to have mercy on him when passing sentence. 

He was sentenced to 25 years' direct imprisonment for murder and seven years' direct imprisonment for defeating and obstructing the administration of justice. 

Nogonyoti informed the court that the accused was on parole for a previous conviction for robbery with aggravating circumstances, for which he was sentenced to 15 years' direct imprisonment. The court ordered him to serve the last seven years of his previous sentence before he begins serving the 25 years of direct imprisonment.

Western Cape Director of Public Prosecutions, Adv Nicollette Bell, applauded the sentence handed down but condemned the vicious cycle of gender-based violence and femicide.

Cape Times