In October 2019 activist Roegchanda Pascoe testified against gang boss Moegamat Faeez Hendricks and his co-accused Naeem Benjamin in the Western Cape Division of the High Court. Hendricks was sentenced to life and Benjamin handed 20 years in jail. Since then Pascoe has received numerous threats, her house in Manenberg was shot at and she is currently hiding overseas. (Photo: Supplied) 
Two years after 31-year-old Christine Gumirah was assassinated outside the Wynberg Magistrate’s Court in May 2023, the gunman was sentenced to life in prison, while his two accomplices were sentenced to 15 years this week.
Gumirah was a co-accused in a murder matter and was about to become a State witness. Investigating officer Warrant Officer Shaun Fortuin was on his way to court to collect her and place her into witness protection before she was killed.
On Thursday, 21 August 2025, Judge Andre le Grange in the Western Cape Division of the High Court sentenced Mandisi Mofu, the shooter, to life in prison while Lukhanye Meme and Vuminkosi Vumane received 15 years as accomplices to the crime.
Western Cape Director of Public Prosecutions Advocate Nicolette Bell said the sentences sent a message that the State would use all its resources to hold those who targeted witnesses accountable.
Gangs and organised crime syndicates, however, have been sending their own message: speak out and you could be killed.
Instilling fear
Mofu, Meme and Vumane arrived at the Wynberg Magistrate’s Court in a taxi on the day of the murder. Meme and Vumane went inside while Mofu remained in the taxi.
In a statement, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said: “Meme and Vumane were in the same courtroom with the deceased, monitoring her movements. Meme was viewed through video footage leaving the court building and giving Mofu a sign. Soon after, Mofu exited the vehicle, he walked towards Gumirah, who was joined by two other women, and shot her.”
The prosecutors’ case hinged on another State witness, taxi driver Andile Nqalathi, who testified that he drove the killers to the court, heard the shots, and then left with just Mofu.
The NPA said Gumirah’s family, who moved from Zimbabwe to the Western Cape for a better life, had since relocated to another province in fear.
“This is the extent of how fear was instilled in the family, and the events of 25 May 2023 forever changed their lives. [Gumirah’s] friends who accompanied her on the day have refused to have any contact with the police, fearing that being witnesses may lead to them being killed like Gumirah.”
Thandi Viljoen was caught in the crossfire during the shooting, and a bullet went through her vehicle’s rear window.
“Viljoen’s attempted murder has changed her life forever. She does not travel or move around without looking over her shoulder. Any loud sound still triggers her anxiety to this day,” said the NPA.
Witness in hiding
Witnesses to gang violence and organised crime pay a heavy price for speaking out.
Crime activist Roegchanda Pascoe dared to testify against ruthless gangsters in 2019 after she witnessed a murder in Manenberg, Cape Town. A price was put on her head and she went into hiding. In the end, she had no choice but to flee abroad.
Pascoe testified against gang boss Moegamat Faeez Hendricks and his co-accused Naeem Benjamin, resulting in Hendricks being sentenced to life imprisonment and Benjamin being sentenced to 20 years in October 2019.
/file/dailymaverick/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/ED_543360.jpg "The Wynberg Magistrate's Court. (Photo: Gallo Images / Die Burger / Theo Jeptha)")
Once word leaked out that Pascoe was testifying, she and her family were placed under witness protection. But the threats never stopped: shots were fired at her house in Manenberg. She remains in hiding overseas.
She spoke to Daily Maverick following the recent murder of 27-year-old Tharwah Bazier, who is believed to have witnessed gang crimes. Pascoe told Daily Maverick: “The murder of State witnesses is deeply worrying. I could have suffered the same fate if I hadn’t fled the country.”
Read more: Residents’ input crucial in community safety plans to help combat rampant Cape Flats crime
Killed by association
Bazier was shot dead near a supermarket on Jakkalsvlei Avenue in Bonteheuwel on Saturday, 16 August 2025. The killing bore all the hallmarks of a planned hit. While not a gang member herself, she was allegedly involved with a gangster who is presently in prison.
Bazier, who had two children, was allegedly previously in a relationship with gangster and convicted murderer Kyle du Toit, who is currently in prison. Before her death she had visited him, and a selfie of the two of them in prison went viral. It appears that this relationship may have sealed her fate.
On the day of her murder, Bazier received a call to meet someone in Bonteheuwel. She was accompanied by two friends when they walked down Jakkelsvlei Avenue.
According to police spokesperson Wesley Twigg, at about 5.40pm, Bazier was walking down the street when a male walked up to her and shot her. She was shot in the back of her head and died at the scene. The suspect fled and is still at large.
On Tuesday, 19 August 2025, police confirmed the matter was still under investigation and said there were no new developments to report.
Speaking anonymously to Daily Maverick this week, two female members of the Americans gang said that women in relationships with gang members become vulnerable if their partners were imprisoned or killed, due to what they may have seen or heard.
Killed before having a chance to testify
There’s a long list of witnesses who have been killed before having a chance to testify, or even having the chance to speak to investigators and prosecutors.
In January 2025, a witness in a murder case was killed outside the Lenasia Magistrate’s Court. In the Khayelitsha mass murder case against Yanga “Bara” Nyalara and Wanda Tofile, two of three witnesses were killed before the trial, largely leading to the pair’s acquittal.
A July 2025 study on South Africa’s Witness Protection Programme by Tsokolo Augustinus Posholi and Phillip Resimate Vuma found that: “Witnesses play a pivotal role in court proceedings, yet many remain unprotected, leading to case withdrawals or unjust acquittals due to intimidation and threats.”
They continued: “Witnesses who have testified in court are not protected as envisaged in the eligibility criteria in terms of the Witness Protection Act. They continue to live in fear.
“A further assertion by the study participants is that witnesses who are not in the Witness Protection Programme are only protected during the trial. After the State has concluded its case, no assistance is given to the witnesses involved.”
They said witness protection measures were inadequate due to a lack of resources, which should be increased. They advised the authorities to inform communities about their options for witness protection, as well as to establish dedicated SAPS units to provide temporary protection for witnesses not in the Witness Protection Programme.
Speaking to Daily Maverick in 2024, Lizette Lancaster, crime hub manager at the Institute for Security Studies (ISS), explained the factors that influenced whether people reported cases, acted as witnesses or testified.
“One of them is fear of retaliation. We’ve seen how some of these highly organised criminal groups and their kingpins even kill attorneys and high-level investigators on their cases. These kingpins and their networks rule with absolute fear,” she said.
“They are not limited to one type and are not afraid to use violence. So there is a lot of complexity to this, and the solutions are equally complex. However, we must begin by forensically linking guns, strengthening witness protection programmes and ensuring that investigating officers and witnesses receive all necessary support and protection.
“If we don’t, people will either not come forward, or be assassinated. We know we have a problem with the availability of hitmen for hire.” DM