The Gauteng Division of the High Court in Johannesburg delivered a definitive resolution to a case that gripped South Africa, finding 23-year-old former student Bafana Mahungela guilty on all charges for the brutal 2023 slaying of Sandton schoolteacher Kirsten Kluyts.
Presiding Judge Ian Cox handed down the final verdict, convicting the former Varsity College student of murder, attempted rape, robbery with aggravating circumstances, and defeating the ends of justice.
The conviction brings a tragic chapter to its legal peak nearly three years after the 34-year-old Delta Park High School teacher was attacked while participating in a “MyRun” athletic event at George Lea Park in Parkmore, Sandton, on 29 October 2023. Kluyts, who was 14 weeks pregnant at the time of her death, was discovered along a secluded jogging trail after fellow participants noticed she had failed to cross the finish line. Medical examinations later confirmed that she succumbed to severe blunt-force trauma to the head and strangulation during an assault that lasted roughly eight minutes.
Throughout the prolonged legal battle, Mahungela maintained a plea of not guilty. He advanced a defense claiming he had merely stumbled upon the deceased educator’s body and stripped her clothes in a state of panic to prevent his own fingerprints from lingering at the scene.
However, the State presented a mountain of digital and forensic evidence that directly contradicted his claims, including authentic surveillance footage that tracked his movements around the park, showed him stalking the victim, and captured him leaving the vicinity while wearing Kluyts’ distinct blue athletic T-shirt.
The reading of the verdict provoked an emotional outburst from the accused, who chose to represent himself during the final stretches of the trial. Expressing intense frustration with the legal process, Mahungela interrupted the court proceedings to claim he had been misled regarding his legal protections.
Addressing the bench directly, Mahungela stated, “But I was under your care. And the court said that they would be looking after my rights and all those things, but I’m guilty of all charges.” He continued to challenge the judicial process before his next appearance date could be finalized, aggressively asserting, “I am not sure that I want to stand for myself and here I am guilty of all charges, you said that you will look after my rights”.
Judge Cox rejected the defendant’s blanket denials and heavily criticized his attempts to minimize his presence at the crime scene, confirming that the digital footprint placed him exactly where the murder occurred. With the guilty verdicts formally recorded, the focus of the High Court shifts toward determining an appropriate punishment for the multi-count conviction.
Mahungela will remain in state custody until the legal teams reconvene to present their formal arguments for sentencing, which Judge Cox scheduled to begin on 27 October 2026.