A 29-year-old man, Jabulani Nkosi, has been sentenced to life imprisonment by the High Court in Mpumalanga, South Africa, for murdering his pregnant girlfriend, Boitsoko Khoza.
Khoza was last seen on November 22, 2023, after informing her colleagues that she wouldn’t be at work as she intended to visit her parents in Mamelodi. When she failed to arrive, her family reported her missing.
Three days later, her apartment in Evander was found engulfed in flames. Firefighters responding to the blaze discovered her charred remains inside the residence.A post-mortem examination revealed that Khoza had been beaten, stabbed, and was approximately ten weeks pregnant before her body was set on fire.
Nkosi was later arrested after confessing the crime to friends. During the trial, the court heard expert testimonies and was presented with evidence, including proof that Nkosi had sold Khoza’s phone for R650 shortly after her murder.
The court condemned the act as exceptionally brutal and pointed out Nkosi’s lack of remorse throughout the proceedings.
The judge underscored the gravity of gender-based violence, highlighting the added cruelty involved in taking the life of a pregnant woman.
Nkosi was sentenced to life imprisonment, with an additional five-year sentence for arson to run concurrently. He was also declared unfit to possess a firearm.
Nkosi was also handed an additional five-year sentence for setting the victim’s body on fire.
The judgment was delivered on Thursday, July 3, 2025, after he was found guilty of both murder and arson.
