The South African Police Service (SAPS) in the Eastern Cape has welcomed the sentencing of a 40-year-old man following a deadly axe attack that killed his girlfriend and seriously injured multiple family members.
On 26 March 2026, the Maloti Regional Court convicted and sentenced Mboneleleli Ntantiso to life imprisonment for murder, an effective 45 years for three counts of attempted murder, and 10 years for assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.
The court heard that on 19 May 2025, Ntantiso fatally attacked his girlfriend with an axe at her residence. He then proceeded to attack five other family members, including her siblings, with the same weapon, inflicting life-threatening injuries. After the attack, Ntantiso fled the scene.
A multidisciplinary manhunt was launched under the direction of the District Commissioner of Alfred Nzo, Major General Nompumelelo Majikijela. The operation involved members from Crime Intelligence, Matatiele and Maloti Visible Policing (Vispol) Detectives, and the Maloti K9 unit. The suspect was arrested in under a week.
The case was initially enrolled at the Matatiele Magistrate’s Court before being transferred to the Maloti Regional Court, where the suspect was found guilty on all charges on 20 March 2026.