Attorney Sithembiso Nkatha was sentenced on 19 August 2026 to 12 months’ imprisonment or a R10,000 fine, with half suspended, after Judge Jacqueline Henriques found him in contempt of court for failing to appear at the start of a Durban High Court mass murder trial in July 2025. Nkatha’s absence delayed proceedings in a case against alleged hitmen Sbonelo Shangase and Thalente Mkhize, who face 30 counts including 15 murders.
The underlying case stems from the 2021 murders of Brendan Thandroyen, Bianca Afrika, and Craig Thandroyen in Durban’s Point area, according to reporting by GroundUp, IOL, and News24. Shangase and Mkhize face charges spanning multiple alleged killings, making the matter one of KwaZulu-Natal’s most significant murder prosecutions in recent years.
Nkatha failed to attend the trial’s scheduled start on 21 July 2025 and was directed to appear again on 24 July 2025 but did not, according to GroundUp. He formally withdrew from the case in August 2025, and Judge Henriques found him in contempt in January 2026 after reviewing his pattern of non-attendance.
During sentencing proceedings reported by IOL on 19 February 2026, Nkatha sought Legal Aid representation and told the court he was consulting a traditional healer, saying only: “I must at least try.” News24 separately confirmed that Nkatha sought Legal Aid while facing the contempt proceedings, though it did not report on the traditional healer consultation.
“As a result of his conduct, the trial did not proceed, huge expenses were incurred by the State in securing the attendance of witnesses, both lay and expert witnesses, and it impacted on the administration of justice,” Judge Henriques said, according to IOL.
Her remarks underscore the broader cost of attorney non-attendance in complex criminal trials, where witness coordination and court scheduling strain already limited judicial resources. Contempt findings against legal practitioners remain rare in South African courts, despite persistent problems with case postponements and attorney non-attendance across the court system.
GroundUp reports that the trial can only be accommodated again in October 2026, a delay of more than a year from its original July 2025 start date. This scheduling detail has not been independently confirmed by News24 or IOL.
Cape Flats was not present at the Durban High Court proceedings and is relying on reporting by GroundUp, News24, and IOL for this article. We will seek confirmation of the October 2026 trial date from the Durban High Court and update this article as the case develops.