A former apartheid-era police officer, Johan Marais, has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for the 1987 murder of 23-year-old student leader and Congress of South African Students (COSAS) member, Caiphus Nyoka.
Court sentences Johan Marais to 15 years for Caiphus Nyoka murder
The sentencing took place on Thursday at the Pretoria High Court. The courtroom erupted into song as Judge Mokhine Mosopa announced the 15-year prison term.
Marais, now 66, pleaded guilty, admitting that he acted under an unlawful order and expressed remorse for his actions.
According to his guilty plea, Marais admitted to firing four shots at Nyoka, while his colleagues, who still face pending charges, were responsible for additional gunfire.
Nyoka was shot 12 times in total—struck in the head, chest, and face.
Nyoka was a matric student and former executive member of the Transvaal Students Congress. On the night of his death, he was staying at his family home in Daveyton along with three visiting students—Exodus Gugulethu Nyakane, Excellent Mthembu, and Elson Mnyakeni.
The students were in town to attend a funeral and had been offered accommodation at the Nyoka residence.
In statements made following the murder, the three youths said police entered the house during the early hours of the morning.
They recalled that four white police officers, accompanied by black council officers, forcibly entered their room. After demanding to know who among them was Nyoka, he identified himself.
The youths were then ordered out of the room, half-dressed, and forced to lie face down outside. Shortly thereafter, they heard gunfire coming from the room where Nyoka remained.
The police later escorted them at gunpoint to a police vehicle and transported them to the Daveyton station.
At the station, the youths said they witnessed a white police officer write a chilling message on a blackboard:
“999 Lemba Street – Caiphus Nyoka executed – Hands of Death.” Caiphus’ father, Abednigo Moses Nyoka, later confirmed this account, stating that police arrived around 02:30, forcibly entered the house, and removed his son’s body around 4:30am.
The sentencing of Marais is part of ongoing efforts in post-apartheid South Africa to address historical injustices.
It follows decades of stalled accountability and is one of several cases being reopened to bring justice to victims of apartheid-era crimes.
In parallel to this case, an inquest is currently underway into the deaths of the Cradock Four—Matthew Goniwe, Fort Calata, Sparrow Mkhonto, and Sicelo Mhlauli—anti-apartheid activists who were abducted and murdered by security forces in 1985.
These proceedings form part of a broader move to pursue restorative justice for victims of apartheid repression.
