The South Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg reserved judgment on 4 September 2026 in the murder trial of Bafana Mahungela, the student accused of killing pregnant Sandton teacher Kirsten Kluyts in October 2023. The court will deliver its final ruling on 11 September 2026.
Mahungela faces charges of kidnapping, robbery with aggravating circumstances, murder, and attempted rape. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges. The State presented CCTV footage, forensic evidence, and movement data during the trial, according to reports from TimesLive and IOL covering the proceedings.
Kirsten Kluyts, a teacher at Delta Park High School, was killed on 29 October 2023. Her body was found along a jogging path in George Lea Park in Sandton. Mahungela was arrested the following month at a student residence in Parkmore, Johannesburg.
NPA spokesperson Magaboke Mohlatlole confirmed the case had reached its final stage. ‘With all evidence and submissions now before the court, the case has entered its final stage, with judgment expected next week,’ Mohlatlole said, speaking to IOL.
The trial has drawn significant public attention, partly because Kluyts was reportedly pregnant at the time of her death. Cape Flats News could not independently verify this detail, as it appeared in only one of the supplied reports and has not been confirmed by a second independent source or official court record.
The case has parallels with broader concerns about violence against women in South Africa, which remains a national crisis. The killing of a teacher — a figure central to community life — intensified public scrutiny of the trial. Reports indicate the State built its case around surveillance footage placing Mahungela near the scene, forensic findings, and phone movement data.
Cape Flats News journalists were not present at the South Gauteng High Court. This report is based on coverage by IOL, TimesLive, The Citizen, and Africa Daily, whose reporters attended the proceedings. The exact wording of any oral ruling delivered by the judge remains unverified from the supplied sources, and the full forensic findings have not been independently confirmed without access to the underlying court record.
What remains unknown is whether the court will convict or acquit Mahungela on 11 September, and what evidentiary findings the judge will emphasise in the ruling. Cape Flats News will check for the judgment outcome on 11 September 2026.