Mpumalanga Detective Sergeant Makes 3rd Court Appearance After Turning Herself In for Double Murder

• The female police sergeant who handed herself over to police for double murder appeared in court for a third time
• Nyiko Nyathi is accused of orchestrating the murder of her husband, during which one of his mistresses was also killed
• Nyathi faces several charges, including two counts of murder and two counts of robbery with aggravating circumstances
• NPA spokesperson Monica Nyuswa told Briefly News that Nyathi was being held at the women's Nelspruit Correction Centre

Tshepiso Mametela is a seasoned journalist and the Head of Current Affairs at Briefly News. He reported live from President Cyril Ramaphosa's inauguration and has written articles on politics, crime, courts, accidents, and topics including sports at The Herald and Opera News SA over several years.

MPUMALANGA — The female sergeant arrested after turning herself in to police for a double murder in Bushbuckridge is set to apply for bail.

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Nyiko Nyathi appeared briefly in the Bushbuckridge Magistrate's Court on Monday, 17 March 2025. It followed her arrest a week earlier, on 10 March, before appearing in court briefly the same day.

Bushbuckridge Sergeant in court for 2 murders

She appeared for a second time two days later and the case was remanded.

Mpumalanga National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson Monica Nyuswa told Briefly News that in addition to the murders, Nyathi, who is a detective sergeant, faced two counts of robbery with aggravating circumstances. A further attempted murder charge was added.

According to police, in February 2024, a group of armed men accosted and attacked Lawrence Mashego at his home in Boikutsong Trust. He was found with one of his two mistresses on the night.

The suspects coerced him into revealing where he kept more money, and he reportedly told them about his girlfriend in Zoeknog A, who had his bank cards.

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They proceeded to steal two of his vehicles — a Toyota Quantum minibus taxi and a Ford Escort — before driving 25km to the second property.

There, they found Victoria Lebyane, Mashego's second mistress. The suspects robbed Lebyane, 44, of about R4,000 in cash, took the bank cards in her possession and shot and killed her.

The men fled, again taking Mashego, 44, and the first woman.

Mpumalanga police spokesperson Donald Mdhuli told Briefly News that along the way, the kidnappers shot and killed Mashego, dumping his body next to Dwarsloop. They later released the other woman unharmed.

Four suspects were subsequently arrested and, following a guilty plea, the court sentenced one accused to 77 years in prison. The other three went to trial before being found guilty and jailed.

Nyathi, 42, with whom Mashego had two children, was later fingered as the alleged mastermind behind his murder. A second murder charge followed.

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She appeared in court on the five charges she faces on Monday. The case was postponed to 26 March for a formal bail application.

Nyuswa, who told Briefly News the accused was being held in the women's section at the Nelspruit Correctional Centre, said she had not yet entered a plea.

"She will remain in custody pending the outcome of her bail application. The postponement [was also due in part] to having to source a neutral prosecutor, given a few prosecutors [in that jurisdiction] worked alongside her as she was a detective," she exclusively told Briefly News.

Nyathi was immediately suspended after handing herself in and an internal investigation is underway.

Source: Briefly News