The High Court in Mbombela has sentenced Clara Masinga, a 37-year-old Mozambican woman, to 23 years’ direct imprisonment for the murder of her 11-year-old stepdaughter, Jennifer Gumbi.
According to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), Masinga pleaded guilty to premeditated murder, which means she planned the killing before carrying it out.
The court heard that Masinga entered into a Section 105A plea and sentence agreement, a legal arrangement where the accused admits guilt and agrees on a sentence with the state before the court formally approves it.
Masinga lived with Jennifer’s father, Rodgers Gumbi, at KwaMhlushwa, Phosaville Section, in the district of Malelane, Mpumalanga.
On 21 March 2015, she devised a plan to lure the young girl away from home. She sent one of Jennifer’s friends to fetch her and waited at a distance. When Jennifer arrived, Masinga told her that someone wanted to buy her new clothes and asked her to accompany her to her house.
Upon reaching the house, Masinga called her accomplice, who stayed with the child while she went to a nearby tuck shop — a small local store — to buy ice cream and rat poison, commonly known as Rattex.
The court was told that Masinga and her accomplice crushed the poison and mixed it with the ice cream before giving it to the child. Jennifer ate it, became severely ill, and later died.
Her body was later found dumped in a shallow ditch near the Mlumati River, following a police investigation that eventually led to Masinga’s arrest.
During court proceedings, State Advocate Senzo Zindela told the court that Masinga’s actions were deliberate and cruel.
He said the child was killed “under the influence of another person” and that Masinga went further to pour boiled water on the body to make sure the plan succeeded. Zindela argued that the court should impose a harsh sentence to show society that such acts against children are unacceptable.
In her plea statement, Masinga admitted that she poisoned the girl to “spite the victim’s mother.” She told the court she knew her actions were unlawful and punishable by law.
When delivering judgment, Judge Vukeya said the murder was an example of “senseless violence against children” and condemned the rise in domestic violence and child killings in South Africa.
The judge added that no sentence could ever bring back Jennifer’s life but that the punishment must reflect the seriousness of the crime.
However, the court noted that there were compelling circumstances — factors that slightly reduced her sentence — and decided to deviate from the minimum life sentence prescribed for premeditated murder.
Instead, the judge imposed 23 years’ direct imprisonment, meaning Masinga will serve her sentence in full without suspension.
Masinga was also declared unfit to possess a firearm, a standard legal measure for people convicted of violent crimes.
In South Africa, any person who suspects that a child is being abused, neglected or exploited is legally required to report it. You can contact the Department of Social Development’s 24-hour call centre at 0800 428 428 (0800 4 CHILD), or send a ‘please call me’ to *120*7867#. Reporting is confidential, and help is available for victims and whistleblowers.