- Discovery: In June 2024, police at a roadblock near La Lucia, Durban, found Gumede’s lifeless body in the back of a bakkie (pickup truck). It was wrapped in plastic and covered with bags and cardboard. Mhlongo, the driver, tried to flee but was caught hiding in a nearby office park.
- Crime: Mhlongo and an accomplice, Nolisa Gadiso, beat Gumede to death in a bushy area near La Lucia Mall (where she worked as a domestic worker). The postmortem showed she had more than 1 litre of blood in her stomach and extensive bruising. Reports suggest the murder was linked to suspicions of her cheating.
- Sentencing: On 2 June 2026 (Monday), Durban regional court magistrate Garth Davis described the case as one of the most serious and “vile” he had encountered, handing down a life sentence.
This is a tragic case of domestic violence and murder that was only uncovered due to a routine police roadblock. South African courts have been imposing life sentences more firmly in such brutal gender-based violence cases.
